Two Sides of the Same Coin
by Niry Krane
Summary: Something is wrong. Link is wandering, cleaving lands of evil, Zelda barely eats, and Midna pines for her Hero. But a shadow has grown, and Ganondorf's laugh fills Link's dreams. A long hidden secret, guised by the Old Legends, is discovered. LinkXMidna
1. Prologue

_Exert from the journal of Princess Zelda_

Can no one sense what I can sense? Can no one see the storm approaching? Can you not hear the cries of the trees? The sobs of the animals? Does the howl of the grey wolf no longer rise to the moon?

I am alone in this world. My life is a maze of canyons, mountains, plains, and cliffs. Hyrule, my kingdom, is becoming prosperous, but I seem to be the only one who can sense the wolf beneath the sheep's pelt.

Evil is stirring in my lands. I can feel it in the air. Palace life is quiet, and the corridors are cold. I cannot sleep, food does not appeal to me, and my servants notice my strange absences from time to time.

I know what I search for, yet I do not know where to find it. I am becoming frustrated, angry, but there is no one to blame but myself. My faults and failures. I should never have let her leave this world.

The World of Light is becoming a dark place. I was with Link when he placed the Master Sword back into the pedestal, and I had hoped against hope that the seal would be strong enough to prevent Ganondorf from ever returning, but I was wrong.

He is coming. I can smell his fury. Link is in great danger, but I have no knowledge of his whereabouts. Being the Chosen Hero drove him away from his old life, in Ordon Province, where he served as a farm hand and herded goats. He wanders freely now, all over Hyrule. I am soon to travel in disguise to the village girl Ilia, who I know is a dear friend of his. Perhaps she knows where Link is temporarily residing. I can only hope so much.

I am becoming quiet, much less outspoken since Link drove the Master Sword through Ganondorf's gleaming black breastplate. I hardly ever speak nowadays.

Challenges are before me. Yet, even though my own path is difficult, it is not nearly half as terrible as Link's, should he choose to take the Master Sword once more in his hands, and strike down evil before it strikes down him.

Midna, the princess of the Twilight Realm, having destroyed the Mirror of Twilight with a golden tear, has departed, but now, as soon as she leaves, she is needed more than she ever was. Though the only known connection between our worlds is severed, I know there is another way. Another way to find Midna and bring her back before it is too late.

If she does not return, I, as well as Link, will perish in the coming storm. And she herself, having been exposed to the purest of Light, she, half Twilight being and half Light being, will join us in the land of Death.

I am the only person aware of these events.

I am Zelda


	2. Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

Princess Zelda laid down her quill. Leaning back in her chair from her journal, she glanced at the window.

"Twilight," she murmured to herself. "How ironic." She pushed herself up from her chair, and walked slowly to the door.

Her face was more hollowed than it had once been, but there was no denying how beautiful she was. She had once walked with an air of superiority, but now her back was slightly stooped. Under her vibrant blue eyes, dark circles clearly announced her lack of sleep. Her long gown, purple and white, the Hylian designs on the skirt and the lace gloves, swished the floor as she walked.

Her long brown hair, tied back and tied tightly, two thin braids draped over her shoulders, was not as shining or silky as it had been.

Zelda was a wreck. Even she admitted it. She could barely remember the last time she had slept more than a wink, and eaten more than half a sharing.

The icy corridors bit at her face and she blinked. It had never been this cold inside the castle, not since Link had killed Ganondorf.

She wrapped her arms around herself, quickening her pace. Dinner should be nice and hot, but she found, without much surprise, her lack of hunger.

The dining room was lit by a merry fire to the immediate right of the long wooden table. Zelda seated herself not at the head, but the chair beside it. A small maid laid a silver plate of chicken, potatoes, peas, and carrots, and a silver goblet of pure cold water in front of her.

Zelda stared blankly at the steaming meal for a moment, and the maid began to urge her.

"Please, my Lady," she said. "You must eat."

Zelda looked up at her, and the girl lowered her eyes. "I'm not hungry." she replied drearily.

"Lady," the maid insisted. "If you do not eat soon, you will starve."

Zelda looked back down at the food. "I can't let that happen." She knew that if she died, then Link would remain unaware of Ganondorf's pressing return, and Midna would remain in her Realm.

Zelda, with great difficulty, picked up her fork and poked at the chicken, finally tearing off a small piece and placing it on her tongue. She chewed slowly, but all she could taste was ash.

The maid, satisfied, said softly, "If there's anything you need, Lady, just tell me. I'll do what I can." she bowed and left to the kitchens.

Zelda watched her leave, and when she was sure the maid was gone, she took her plate, hurried to the window, and scraped most of it out onto the ground.

She sat back down, patting her mouth with her napkin, (should anyone be watching) and stood, brushing off her gown and leaving the room.

None of the maids had found the excess food turning into a compost heap outside the dining hall window, Zelda had made sure of that. Wild beasts often crept into the grounds to feast on the meals she turned away from.

Zelda closed her heavy wooden doors and locked them as she entered her chambers. She left her quill where it was, and instead stood at the window, where she could see Castle Town in all its bustling activity, even in the late hours of the day.

"I must find him," she whispered to herself. "Link must be warned." She shivered, though there was no breeze. "I can feel Ganondorf coming."

Zelda turned away from the window and sighed. She knew she was facing another sleepless night.


	3. Chapter Two

CHAPTER TWO

Midna, princess of the Twilight Realm, sat in a black wooden chair, fiddling with an inkwell. She had debated writing a letter to Link, but since she destroyed the Mirror, there was no way for him to receive it.

A loud knock on her door made her start, and she wiped at the tears cascading down her light blue cheeks. Her rose-red eyes were irritated, because since leaving the Twilight Realm, not a day had gone by without her crying.

"C-come in," she stuttered. _Damn, _she cursed herself mentally. _You knew it had to be done. Stop crying._

A tall young man entered, his skin the same blue hue hers was. Her brother. "Midna," he said. "I come with a question." he paused. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes, I believe I am. Go away, will you, Venivre? I want to be alone for a minute."

But Venivre didn't leave. He walked closer to his sister, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You're thinking about him, aren't you? The Light being you were with?" Midna did not answer him. "I know you are. Sister, listen to me. You are the Twilight Princess. He is just another Light being. You destroyed the Mirror, so there is no way for you to go back. It is best if you just forget about him."

Midna grabbed his hand and dug her fingernails into his light blue flesh.

"Did it ever occur to you," she hissed. "_Brother_, that maybe I don't want to forget? Maybe I can't forget."

Venivre wrenched his hand away from her, looking at the cuts her fingernails had left. "It is wrong, and you know it." he snarled back at her. "He belongs in the Light, and you, dear sister, do not."

He turned on his heel and stalked out, leaving Midna to cry into her hands.

_Stop crying, _she urged herself. _You were tough in the World of Light, weren't you? Maybe Venivre is right, maybe you can't go back. _

She roughly wiped away the tears and was starting to go down to dinner, when she stopped. She was not hungry.

Midna looked out the window over her world. The Twilight World. She had a vague sense of foreboding, of calamity, but she shook her head and the feeling vanished as quickly as it had come.

She touched her forehead, where a pendant of rubies and gold hung to just above her nose, and knew what she wanted to do. What she _needed _to do.

Midna locked the door, and stood in the center of her room, her beautiful red eyes closed, her brow wrinkled in concentration.

She was going back to the World of Light, nothing would stop her. But to do so, she needed to change her shape.

Her impish form would have to do. Midna knew she shouldn't leave, but she needed to. Her heart was wrought with the desire to see Link again, to lay her hand on his cheek, so be his little shadow.

Midna knew it was crazy, no, insane, beyond belief, unthinkable, that the Twilight Princess, her, had fallen in love with a being of Light.

But she knew, as she dwelled more and more on the prospect, that it was true, no matter how inconceivable.

Midna ran her hands over her face, feeling the fine, chiseled features and the shape of her eyes and brows. She was ready to give them up to be the imp she was cursed to be, for almost a year.

But to return to the World of Light, she had to find the other portal. And she knew exactly where to go.


	4. Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

Link loved the feeling of the wind. The way it rushed over you, through your hair and your fingers. The way it cooled you on a hot summer day, or warmed your heart when you were sad.

He dismounted Epona, and the wind's breath ceased. Kneeling down on the soft earth, he ran his fingers over the mark in the dirt.

A footprint. It was immense, nearly four times as big as his own foot, and the edges were ragged, as though the boot that had left it was made of stone. Link had a strong, ominous feeling, and for a moment, he thought, _Could this print possibly be Ganondorf's? _

Link had never spoken much. He had never been good with words, and he hated to admit it, but he was afraid people would hate his voice. He had only ever spoken to three people. Midna, Zelda, and Ilia.

He put one finger in his mouth and tested the soft swish of air around him. It was blowing from the south. He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling again the wind caress his face.

A bug buzzed lazily by his pointed ear, jangling the small blue hoop earring, and the moment was shattered.

He opened his vibrant blue eyes and thought, _The Midsummer Festival is coming up in Ordon. Should I take a break from my wanderings to enjoy a day or two with my friends? Or are there places in this land I still have not been?_

Half of his mind began to argue with the other half, until he finally decided to go to the Midsummer Festival. He missed all of his friends, especially Ilia.

He swung himself onto Epona and dug his heels into her flanks, causing her to whinny and gallop off to the north, with the wind at her back. He was in a land below Ordon, far to the south, where the wind spoke and the trees danced.

The branches of the saplings waved at him as he cantered by them, and he laughed in spite of himself. He'd made some friends.

The sun sank below the west horizon, and Link stopped for the night in a small grove of pines. He tied Epona securely to a tree, and made himself a makeshift bed on a pallet of moss and pine needles.

It was anything but comfortable. The needles, though soft when on their sides, seemed to stick straight up into his back like a fairy's knife.

He rolled onto his side, but all that did was upset the needles further. Turning to Epona, he grunted, "As soon as I try to get comfortable, there's suddenly a great needle stabbing me in the back."

Epona made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh, tossing her head and stomping the ground with her hooves.

Link couldn't help smiling. And, pretty soon, sleep found him.

A dream came to him that night. No, a nightmare.

"_We sssssee you. You cannot hide, Hero. Come to usssss." Hands of mist tore at his clothes and his arms, and Link fought to keep them away. He felt one rip his long green hat from his head, and he ran._

_He could not see where he was going, all that mattered was to get away from the phantoms. And yet, though he ran as fast as he could, they still grasped at him._

_A sudden, sharp pain in his side made him fall, but he fell a long way down. It was seeming forever endless, when he suddenly hit the ground. An earthy scent filled his nose, and he weakly bent his left hand back to touch his side where the pain was. _

_His fingers felt the hot wetness of his own blood, and something more. A hard nub of bone had ripped through his flesh, and when his fingers touched it, pain shot up his body._

_Half of his face was bloody. His chest ached as though someone had stomped on it with all their strength. _

_Link found he could not move his legs, and instinct told him to reach for his sword. His left hand reached up behind him, but a foot slammed it back down, breaking his wrist. He howled with pain._

"_The Chosen Hero," a voice sneered. "In all his glory." The foot ground his broken wrist into the dirt, and the smell of blood filled the air. Link moaned._

"_Yessssss." the voice hissed. "It is I. The one you stabbed on the field. The one who cursed the Twilight Princess. The one who will write the history of Light and Shadow in your blood!"_

"_Ganondorf," Link whispered. _

Link woke in a cold sweat, his breathing ragged and heavy. Dawn was breaking in the east and Link knew he should be leaving. He stood, and brushed pine needles and moss from his back.

Untying Epona, he mounted and urged her to run, though she was still groggy with sleep. He would eat as he rode.


	5. Chapter Four

CHAPTER FOUR

Zelda paused in her writing. She felt a great, staggering pain in her left hand, as if the very bones in it were shattered. She bit her lip to keep from screaming.

She stood, stumbling, and grasped her left hand, burning with pain, in her right one. She felt the tears of agony coming to her eyes as she ran her slender fingers over her wrist, feeling no break in the flesh, no blood, and all the bones seemed to be in order.

Then, just as suddenly as it had come, the pain dissipated. Zelda stood, gasping, in the center of her bedchamber, clutching her left hand, the tears of a violent pain she could no longer feel trickling down her cheeks.

She stared for a moment at her hand, studying the white lace glove intently, trying to discover the source of the stinging agony.

Zelda sat limply back down in her chair, forcing her eyes away from her hand. There was only one other way for her to feel the pain, if it was not hers. It must have been someone else's, in a dream or reality. Someone close to her.

She sighed.

Link. Of course.

If he had felt such pain, it could not have been real. It must have been a dream. It had to be. He was nowhere in Hyrule, where the real threat was. It had either been a dream of his, or he had broken his wrist while traveling.

With a start, Zelda realized her breath was ragged and uneven. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"It was nothing," she whispered to herself. "Link is fine. It was just a dream." A sudden thought snapped her eyes open. Why would Link be dreaming of pain?

She stood. It was time to disguise herself and leave.

Ordon awaited.


	6. Chapter Five

CHAPTER FIVE

Midna sighed for the umpteenth time. In her imp form, she was much more light, agile, quick, but she could not change her wits.

It should have been there. Right there. Midna ran her long fingers over the crescent-moon shape engraved in the stone. The pendant should have rested in it, the last portal between the worlds of Light and Twilight. The crescent moon necklace had a single symbol etched into it.

Words. Tantalizing, unknown words. For centuries, the pendant had remained untouched, hidden in this place, this stronghold, but it was gone.

Poof.

Midna felt the anger welling inside her, and she clenched her hands, slamming her fists onto the pedestal. Bits of dust and small stones fell from the ancient pedestal, and she withdrew her hands.

If it was not here, she told herself, then some tomb robber must have taken it, someone not of her tribe, the Twili.

She hissed through her teeth, the unnatural long fang on her left side strangely altering the hiss.

Midna flitted from the pedestal, looking throughout the cavern. It was just in the side of the mountain, hidden to all but the ruler of the Twilight. Or so she'd thought. It was colossal, high and arched, with the pedestal in the very center. Otherwise, it was totally bare, empty.

A slight glimmer on the pedestal caught her rose-red eye, the one not hidden under the useless fragment of Fused Shadow she kept and still wore as a helmet.

Midna turned, and saw that the pedestal was indenting itself, like a bowl. She frowned in confusion and cautiously approached it. A slight rush of water caught her long, pointed ear, and she started. There was no water in sight.

The bowl had filled itself with the purest of water, as clear and cold as a quartz diamond. Her curiosity pricked, she walked slowly back up to the pedestal.

Words were forming on the water, words of black smoke.

_WHAT IS IT YE SEEK FROM THE PENDANT OF WORLDS_

_MIDNA PRINCESS OF TWILIGHT?_

Midna felt silly for a moment. How was she expected to answer? Talk to the water? There was a sight: Midna, the Twilight Princess, talking to a bowl of water.

But she spoke to it anyway. "To go to the World of Light."

The words of smoke vanished and were replaced by different ones.

_THAT IS NOT ALL, IS IT_

_MIDNA PRINCESS OF TWILIGHT?_

She sighed. "No. It is not. I wish to see my friend. He is very dear to me and I fear for him."

_YE PINE FOR HIM_

_MIDNA PRINCESS OF TWILIGHT_

Midna rolled her eyes. "I don't need you to tell me that. Please, I need the Pendant to see him again. I do not feel I belong in the World of Twilight."

_NOR DO YE BELONG IN THE LIGHTYE ARE A BEING OF BOTH RACESLIGHT AND TWILIGHT TOGETHER_

_MIDNA PRINCESS OF TWILIGHT_

Midna had felt this as soon as Zant had exposed her to the Pure Light of a Light Spirit. Since she had nearly died.

"I-" she stuttered, then continued. "I feel I do not belong anywhere. I am the outcast. I am the one who is turned away from both worlds."

_YE SHALL BELONG SOMEWHERE_

_IF YE COULD CHOOSE WHERE_

_SINCE YE DO NOT DESIRE THE PENDANT_

_FOR THE USE OF EVIL_

_IT SHALL BE GRANTED UNTO YE._

_BUT USE IT WELL_

_FOR IF THE PENDANT SHOULD FALL_

_INTO THE HANDS OF HE WHO SEEKS THE HERO_

_DOOM AWAITS YE ALL_

The smoke wisped away, and the water drained from the bowl. The pedestal righted itself, reforming back into an empty pedestal where the Pendant of Worlds should have rested.

Midna blinked her eyes. Impossibly, the Pendant sat simply in the shape of the crescent, very much real.

She reached a shaking hand for it, grasping the black chain and held it before her face. Written on it were three words.

Love.

Courage.

Destiny.

Midna clasped the Pendant of Worlds around her neck and whispered softly to it. "Take me to Lake Hylia, beside the cannon to the Sky." In a soft blue glow that gradually increased, she vanished.


	7. Chapter Six

CHAPTER SIX

Link could not remember the last time he had been this weary. His eyelids fluttered and his head was bent, so he was staring down at Epona's neck. He struggled to stay awake.

Night had long since fallen, but the moon did not appear. The stars were brighter than ever, but a dark section of the sky where the moon should have been awkwardly stuck out.

Link had finally entered Hyrule, just above Ordon Province. The roads had not allowed him to go directly to Ordon, which was surrounded by thick forest and nearly impossible to get to directly from the land Link had been scouring of creatures not of this world.

He sighed with exhaustion. There was no way in Hyrule that he could make it to Ordon tonight. He slowed down Epona, who had been trotting, and sluggishly dismounted, staggering and falling to his knees.

Link forced his eyes to stay open while he relieved Epona of her saddle, though it became ever harder to stay awake. Sleep beckoned with warm fingers, and Link yearned to give in, but he bit his lip so hard it bled, and the pain helped him brush off sleep's hands.

Epona, who was as tired as he was, lay down and immediately fell asleep. Link saw her breathing even out and swallowed the blood from his bleeding lip.

He was afraid to sleep. Since the nightmare about Ganondorf the previous night, he had barely closed his eyes. He sat down, his arms resting on his knees, and leant back against a tree.

Link felt his eyelids drooping and forced them back open. He would stay awake all night if he could. For a moment, he felt as if he was being stupid, getting scared out of his wits by a dream. Then he realized that he had never had dreams about Ganondorf before, ever.

So he wasn't just being stupid. He was being careful. But even being careful could not keep sleep from finally winning, and Link leaned his head back against the tree, eyes closed, and slept.

_He was running. Sweat beaded on his brow and his legs began to ache, but he had to keep running. Always. Never stop. _

_Loud cackling echoed behind him, and Link realized he was in a cave. He looked around him frantically, searching for an escape, but he could see none._

_The laughter became arrogant, obnoxious, evil, and louder. As if the laugher was directly on his heels. _

_Link reached for his sword, but it was not there. Neither was his shield. He gasped for air, still running, and sharply turned to face down his pursuer. _

_Ganondorf laughed again, this time, with malice. He stood to his full height, his barrel chest shaking with insane merriment. _

_Link had forgotten how tall he was, Ganondorf stood at least three heads above him. _

"_Chosen Hero!" Ganondorf's laughter was gone, he was facing Link down. "I have waited long and patiently for this."_

_He raised a sword, Link's own sword, high above his head with one hand. With the other, he grabbed Link by the right wrist and yanked him forward. He ripped Link's black leather gauntlet from his hand and bared the flesh of Link's palm._

_Lowering the sword slowly, he sliced open the skin of Link's hand, and Link saw the blood dripping to the ground. He could not move, though he struggled to get away, his legs refused to work._

_Ganondorf pulled the sword back from Link's hand, engraved upon which was a sideways slash. The blood came hot and fast, cascading down to the stone floor, forming a sickening puddle._

"_You will die, Hero." Sneered Ganondorf, licking the blood from the sword. "I will kill you. The Pendant of Worlds in mine, and I will kill her to rip it away from her filthy hands!"_

_He brought the sword down in a fit of anger, and Link's vision went black._

"Ungh!" Link sat up against the tree, breathing heavily, cold sweat painted on his face. He held up his right hand and saw the black leather gauntlet was securely in place, but he fingered it anyway.

He blinked, and his breathing steadied slightly. Link saw the first rays of dawn gleaming above the treetops, and sighed, leaning his head back against the tree. He closed his eyes, and Ganondorf's laughing face taunted him behind his eyelids.

Link sighed and shook his head to clear it. He was spinning, in shock, and confused. Who had Ganondorf meant by "her"? Whoever she was, she was in danger. If, he reminded himself, his dream was a vision.

He sighed again. It was just a dream. A dream, nothing more.

Epona seemed to sense his discomfort. She nuzzled his cheek with her velvety nose, bringing him back to reality.

He saddled her up and prepared to ride. Midsummer's Festival was the day after tomorrow, and he wanted to get to Ordon before the sun set.


	8. Chapter Seven

CHAPTER SEVEN

Zelda shook her hair back from her face. In her guise, she was just another village girl. She had tied her long auburn hair back in a ponytail at the nape of her neck, where it hung down to her waist. She wore a simple long red tunic with long, wide sleeves and an open neck, a borrowed peasant attire, with slight embroidery that reminded her of Link's friend Ilia's clothes. A white sash encircled her slim waist. Her leggings were black and her boots, that reached her knees, were as brown as her hair.

She had removed her jewelry, save for her numerous earrings on both of her long, pointed ears.

Zelda slung a small brown bag over one shoulder, and threw a rope out of her window. It was dark out, so she would not be seen climbing down from the tallest tower in Hyrule Castle.

She flipped her long hair over one shoulder so as not to get it caught on anything, and tied the rope securely to the stone window frame. Leaning back out the window, she kept her feet against the wall and began to walk down, slowly, carefully.

Zelda grunted as a shower of dust cascaded down below. "Damn," she muttered. If the guard was anywhere near the tower, then she was likely to be seen. Her heart thudded in her chest, but she saw the lantern of the patrolman come no closer, and she breathed again.

She continued to scale down the tower, her hair hanging back behind her.

Zelda landed softly on the dirt, and crouched low to avoid being seen. With a knife, she took careful aim in the darkness, and threw it up at her window, severing the rope at the source and hearing the soft thud of the knife in wood. The rope fell from the window and fell silently to her feet. She coiled it and put it in her bag.

Zelda put another knife in her belt and stepped cautiously across the grounds of her castle. She avoided the lanterns of the guards at all costs, beginning to silently step across the grounds, still in the crouched position.

When the lantern turned away, she bolted for the double doors to the entranceway, grabbing one massive handle and pulling it open. The door opened without a sound, and she slipped through, closing it in the same manner.

Zelda straightened herself and walked down the stone walkway. It lead through an opening to Castle Town, and as far as she knew, the guards had been relieved by her for the night.

Even at night, Castle Town central square was busy. A handful of people rushed through it after the sun set, and Zelda easily swept along with the crowd. She blended in with them perfectly, save for the fact that women here did not wear leggings, boots, and knives.

She rushed along to the stables, and emerged minutes later with a horse, pure white in color, fully saddled and bridled.

Zelda walked the horse, Tumamen, through the gates, closing them behind her. They locked automatically. Nobody tried to stop her. Nobody even saw her, except for the slight figure in a black cloak just beyond the doors outside. Zelda did not see it.

Its head cocked in a manner of listening, and it hissed like an animal. Zelda turned, her horse pawing the ground in fright. Tearing free of her grip of the reins, Tumamen thundered off the bridge over Hyrule River, his white form merging with the blackness of the night.

The cloaked figure slowly walked a circle around Zelda, stopping just in front of her, blocking her way off the bridge, trapping her against the locked doors.

"And who are you to stop me from going on my way?"

"I am ssssearching for ssssomeone." the figure's voice sounded serpentine, hissing on every S. "I wasss wondering if you could help me."

"That depends, sir." Zelda crossed her arms. "On whether or not I know of whom you seek."

"I have heard of your great Princessss Zelda," the snakelike figure hissed. "I shhhould very much like to meet her."

"Ah," Zelda said. "I am afraid, good sir, the Princess does not see visitors these days. Her own guards were turned away from her door, rumor has it."

"Sssssuch a shhhame," the voice took on a slight male quality, though it was still hissing. "Then, perhapsssss, you know of the green-clad warrior? Hissss name essscapesss me."

"D'you mean Link?" Zelda spoke without thinking, and immediately clapped her mouth shut.

"Yesss, I believe that isss him. Then you have indeed met him?"

"Of course not," Zelda said quickly. "He has not been seen for a year and a half. There were rumors that he is dead."

"No," the figure took on a wistful tint to his voice. "He isss not dead."

"What are you asking about the princess and the Hero for?" Zelda tried to look suspicious. "It is not every day this happens."

"I know where the princesssss issss, but I musssst find the Hero. Now tell me," he crouched menacingly. "Princesssss Zelda, where might I find him?"

Zelda's hand flew to her knife, but her adversary pounced on her like a cat, knocking her flat and cracking her head against the stone of the bridge stairs. Clearly he was not human. His teeth, sharp as fangs, scraped at her throat as if he would tear it out. Spots flashed before Zelda's eyes, unconsciousness threatened to engulf her.

"I shhhall assssk again," he hissed in her ear. "Where isss Link?"

"Damn you," she whispered back. "I will never betray him."

"Then you shhhall die," with a screech that filled Zelda's pointed ears and made her wince, her sight went black.


	9. Chapter Eight

CHAPTER EIGHT

Midna felt her knees give way beneath her, and she fell to the ground just next to the cannon to the Sky. It was pitch-black, nighttime here in the World of Light. Her imp form had given way during the portal's action, and she found herself back in her true form.

She sighed and swiftly shifted back into an imp, adjusting her helmet and fingering the Pendant around her neck. A sudden gasp made her crouch in a defensive position, arms open and ready to retaliate any attack.

It was only Fyer, the clownish man who operated Fyer and Falbi's Flight-by-Fowl. He was staring dumbstruck at her, mouth open, shaking.

Midna straightened, realizing how short she was as an imp, and hovered in the air at her usual spot, just beside Link's shoulder.

Link.

Midna floated slowly over to where Fyer was cowering, and held her hands before her face, fingers touching.

She made a hand gesture like a pop and said, "Boo,"

Fyer's eyes rolled into his head and he fainted, leaving Midna giggling to herself and scratching at an itch on her chin.

She floated there for a moment, unsure of what to do. She could not go see Link until she knew where he was, but she could go see Zelda and ask her.

Midna smiled as she imagined Zelda's face when she appeared in the princess's room, in her true form, asking where Link was. Disbelief, confusion, and her mouth, no doubt, would be wide open.

She used her power to ward just outside Castle Town's massive gates. She flew boldly forward, glad for the darkness that hid her from sight.

Midna suddenly froze. There was a figure, wreathed in black, bending over an unconscious form. She cried out, and the figure looked up away from his victim. Something shiny flickered in the dim light of the torches on the wall, but it was gone so quickly Midna was sure she imagined it.

"Who daresss to challenge me my prey?" he hissed. His voice frightened her, it was like sand falling from a palm to the ground.

"Leave them alone, or you'll pay," Midna could think of nothing witty enough to say in time.

"Fine. But when I finishhh with the Hero, I'll come after you, Twilight Princesssss, and your Pendant assss well." With an inhuman leap he soared over Midna's head, and when he hit the wood of the bridge bounded again and out of sight into the inky field.

It happened too fast for Midna to pursue. How had he known who she was? And how had he known she possessed the Pendant of Worlds? It was impossible, and yet, he had known.

She landed lightly on her feet by the sprawled form on the stone before the gates. It was a young woman, but her breathing was ragged and soft, as if it was a struggle. Her long brown hair was spread out behind her head, upon which was a nasty, bloody gash. She must have hit her head on the steps. Her throat as scratched and bleeding as well, but it looked like a knife had cut her.

Her tunic was red, so Midna could not tell whether or not she was wounded more seriously. A small pinprick of blood dotted the flesh just below her collarbones, as if she had been poked with a needle.

Midna picked up her hand to feel for a pulse, and gasped. On the young woman's right hand was the Triforce mark, with the Triforce of Wisdom highlighted against the others.

Zelda.

"Zelda!" Midna cried, shaking her friend's shoulders. There was no response. "Zelda wake up!" Midna shouted at her desperately. "Don't leave me here!"

Zelda finally coughed, and her arms flailed forward, nearly slapping Midna across the face.

Her turquoise eyes fluttered open, and she winced. "…Mid - Midna?"

"What happened?" Midna demanded. "I come all the way back here to see you and Link, and I end up having to save your butt again? I go to all this trouble and I have to rescue you? What kind of a welcome is that?"

Zelda grinned weakly. "I missed you too, Midna."

Midna softened. Her wicked tongue had always acted before her mind. "I can't take it there," she whispered, leaning down onto her knees. "In my Realm. I can't take it all, having to go back to the way things were, and try to forget. I can't forget."

Zelda suddenly stiffened. Her body shuddered and began to shake, and her eyes rolled up into her head. "Zelda?" Midna placed a hand on her brow, and swiftly recoiled. Zelda's forehead was flaming. "Zelda!"

"It was…. Cudyin p-poison…" Zelda struggled to speak. "It's g-going t-to kill me if it-it isn't t-treated."

"What's the cure?" Midna said. When Zelda only coughed and choked, Midna nearly shouted at her. "Damn it, Zelda, what's the cure?!"

"It's c-complicated," Zelda stuttered weakly. "I'll ex-explain l-later. To slow the p-poison…. y-you must… use hot sp-spring water mixed w-with rosem-mary and birch bark. Hurry…. I will d-die in four d-days…" Zelda's head dropped weakly back onto the stone and Midna knew she would only survive if the antidote was properly administered. But who possibly knew about the antidote?

She slapped her forehead. Of course.

Renado.


	10. Chapter Nine

CHAPTER NINE

Link seemed to be tired all the time now. His lapis lazuli eyes were dull with fatigue, though he had arrived at Ordon early afternoon.

"Link!" Ilia had run to meet him, and had noticed the weariness in his face. "You look tired. The Midsummer Festival is in two days, can you stay for it?"

"I planned to," he'd replied. "It's great to see you again, Ilia." They had embraced for a minute in front of his house made from the tree, and then he pulled away from her and went inside.

He sighed heavily. He could not stop thinking about Zelda. It had been a year and a half since Midna's departure, as he called it, and there had not been a word from her at all. He wondered how she was doing.

_Will you stop thinking about her? _A voice in his head sounded annoyed. _You were a farm hand. You herded goats. She's a princess, for the Gods' sakes. If you even think you had a chance- _A loud pounding on his door interrupted his thoughts and he closed his eyes, exhaustion overwhelming him. But he got to his feet and walked over to the door.

It was Beth. "I'd heard you were back," she said quietly. "And I wanted to see you. Are you okay?" She had noticed the dull look in his eyes. "You must be tired." He nodded. She backed away and climbed down the ladder. "I'll go, then." She dashed off and was gone.

Girls. So weird.

He couldn't remember falling asleep, but he woke just before dusk, after the hour of twilight. He automatically thought of Midna, and what she must be doing right then. Being the princess and all, she was probably seeing to some important business or other.

_She's gone, Link. _He told himself roughly. _She's never coming back. _He held his face in his hands for a long time, forcing back his tears. "I'm supposed to be the Hero," he muttered to himself. "Hero's don't cry."

He pushed himself up and walked out the door. He needed some time to be alone. The Festival was the day after tomorrow, but he wasn't so sure he wanted to stay anymore. But he couldn't disappoint Ilia, she'd been waiting for him to return, it was perfectly clear.

Epona tossed her mane when she saw him, as if eager to be ridden, but he smiled and patted her nose. "We're not riding for a while, girl."

He kept his arms at his sides and walked into the forest. Link loved walking in the forest, he always had.

But now, since being the Hero, he thought he'd taken the beauty of the trees for granted. The rustling of the leaves in the warm summer breeze, the soft grass and the moss cloaking the bark beneath his fingers. The animals as the gazed at him with interest, then scurried off to feed their families. He smiled softly to himself as a small bluebird tilted her head at him with great inquiry, then fluttered off to a nest.

Link automatically turned to the Spirit Spring, where the great Spirit of Light, Ordona, resided in the shape of an Ordon goat.

"Link?" he turned and automatically reached for his Ordon sword, having returned the Master Sword to the pedestal in the depths of the Sacred Realm. He half-drew it, but seeing Ilia, standing on the sand by the entrance, he smiled and said, lamely, "Hi,"

"What's up?" Ilia walked toward him, where he stood ankle-deep in the spirit water. Her feet made no disturbance save for a few subtle ripples. "You seem… distracted, somehow."

"I've just been thinking." he turned away from her, back to the carved stones at the head of the Spring.

"About what?" he became consciously aware of her shoulder, so close to his own, her bright green eyes trying to follow his gaze.

"About Twilight." he murmured.

"The twilight is a strange thing to be thinking about." Ilia mused. "It's dusk."

"No, not that twilight." Link shook his head. "The Twilight Realm, bound to this world, like the dark side of a coin."

Silence.

"You miss her, don't you?" Ilia's voice was soft.

"Yes." Link had told Ilia about Midna soon after she destroyed the Mirror of Twilight and left the World of Light forever.

More silence.

"You've been so… different since I was kidnapped. All of a sudden, you hardly even speak to me anymore. You're so quiet, you hardly ever come visit, and I almost never know where you are half the time." She looked up at him, but he didn't meet her eyes. "I'm worried all the time. Since you saved the princess, there were rumors that you'd failed and been killed, and when you came to see us, I was so relieved. But you haven't been here since, and half the time I'm sure you're dead… or… or…"

Ilia's fears came forth with a tumble of tears.

Link felt an overwhelming urge to give her a hug, and he complied. "I know it's been strange, Ilia, and I'm sorry, but I can't live in Ordon."

"Why?" it was a fierce demand. "Link, I don't know you anymore." She wriggled her way out of his arms.

"Because of what I've done. I've killed, Ilia. I'm not a goatherd anymore. I never will be, not again."

Link turned away from the Spring and began to walk out. His boots made soft splashes in the sparkling water, and dusk began to change into night.

"Wait," Ilia was quickly at his side again. "Before the Link I know is gone forever, I need to do something." She stood on her tiptoes and softly kissed him. "Good-bye," she walked past him and left.

Link was standing stunned, his fingers numbly touching his mouth, his body frozen and amazed. As a child, he had always imagined Ilia and him together, but that future was lost now, because of his destiny.


	11. Chapter Ten

CHAPTER TEN

Zelda's mind was a mass of darkness. Somewhere at the back of her head, a voice was chanting, _You will die, he cannot help you, _over and over again, making her head ache as bad as her body.

Midna had barely managed to warp her to the Spirit Spring just inside Kakariko Village, Zelda's on-and-off consciousness told her this. Midna had hidden when Renado had come to see what the matter was, as she had put up a terrible racket to get his attention.

"Dear Goddesses!" He'd cried, attracting the interest of his daughter, Luda, who was standing in the door of the sanctuary.

Zelda had slipped out of consciousness again, but not before choking out,

"Help… Help me…"

When Zelda's eyes opened again, she was on a bed, comfortingly soft, and a blinding white. The pain had not abated. A day of her precious time had been spirited away; only three more until death claimed her.

She coughed, and the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth, making her gag. Someone was sitting by her bed in a small, stiff wooden chair, and a voice called to her as a cloth wiped at her lips; there must be more blood in her mouth than she thought there was.

"Who are you? With what are you afflicted?" the voice was male; deep and soothing.

Zelda opened her mouth to speak, after swallowing the blood, of course, and she croaked out, "Cudyin… Cudyin p-poison…"

"Dear Goddesses." there was the sound of his back hitting the chair and a sigh. "Hot springwater mixed with rosemary and birch bark will slow the poison, but I am afraid there is only one known cure. And it is extremely difficult to come by, even rare, and I cannot leave this village."

There was a soft crash as a door closed. "Father? I heard you." it was a young girl's voice, from the sound of it, she was only thirteen or fourteen.

"Luda," there was rustling as they embraced. "This is one patient I cannot aid. She will die in three days, from the mark where the poison was injected. There is not much we can do but to comfort her in her final days."

Zelda snapped. She could not die. She must not. She tried to push herself up, but the man shoved her back down.

"I cannot… I must… I need to… live…"

"Father," the girl, Luda, spoke up. "I can help her."

"Luda! The only known cure is Fairy's Tears, the sacred waters containing the prayers of the Great Fairy! Only one man has ever dared to retrieve them, and he died three hundred years ago!"

"Well, then someone in this world must have some! She will die!" Luda's small voice rose to match her father's. "I can seek out someone who has them, I can try to-"

"No. You are only thirteen years old, still a child."

"I'm old enough-"

"No!"

Zelda listened to silence for a while. Then, she started, feeling the poison working its way to her heart, and cried out, almost screaming, with the unbearable pain of it.

She swallowed and tried to speak. "I… I am… Zelda…. Princess Zelda… Please… I know who…. has Fairy's Tears…. It is Link… Link has the prayers of the Great Fairy… Please… get him…"

Her head dropped and darkness claimed her again.


	12. Chapter Eleven

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Midna didn't know what to do. Zelda was dying, and Link was the only one who could save her, but she, Midna, was the only one besides that little girl, whatserface, Lu-something, who could find him. And Midna was sure she could find him in half the time the girl could.

Ah! The girl's name was Lutra! Oh, no, that can't be right… Not that it really matters at all.

Midna tapped her chin, trying to scheme. Scheming had always been her forte, but here she was at a dead end. If Lutra, Luta, whatever, went off to find Link and Midna had already retrieved him, then she would be lost and not come back till she found him, if she found him at all.

Midna could try to send a message to Renado and his daughter, but how, she just didn't know.

"Father, please," the girl's voice rose from the Inn. "Let me go. I'll check Ordon for him and if he isn't there, I'll go to Castle Town and inquire. It'll be easy, and I promise to be safe."

"I want to believe you, Luda, I do, but I worry…" So _Luda _was the girl's name!

"I promise." There was silence to greet Luda's assurance, then a great sigh.

"Alright. Please, hurry. Leave now, for another day cannot afford to be wasted, and the poison is already nearing her heart."

"I love you, Father. I'll be back as soon as possible."

Midna had made her choice on how to send a message. It was now or never, and she preferred now.

There was a great rustle as Luda hurriedly packed her things, and she gasped.

Upon the ground outside the window were words, written in fire on the ground and burning bright:

HE IS IN ORDON

I CAN GO

STAY HERE WITH THE PRINCESS

I WILL BE BACK BY MORNING

WITH LINK

MY NAME DOES NOT MATTER

KEEP ZELDA ALIVE

"F-Father," Luda stuttered. "Come look at this!"

Renado ran to the window and read the message. "A message from the Goddesses, surely. Well, my daughter, it seems as though you will not be going to Ordon after all, and thank the Goddesses for that!"

Midna grinned to herself. Why, she had no idea. But she was finally going to see him again. Link. For the first time in a year and a half. And oh, such an eternity that was.


	13. Chapter Twelve

CHAPTER TWELVE

Since returning to Ordon, Link's life had mainly consisted of catching up on his rest, eating, and trying to get Ilia to speak to him again, which she refused to do.

Ilia avoided him at all costs, but sometimes he could track her down. He begged her to forgive him, but she would only lower her eyes and keep away from him, saying softly, "You aren't the Link I know."

It tore him apart. He only ate when he absolutely needed to, and spent long hours alone in the forest, without even Epona to carry him. His eyes became dull and red-rimmed with sorrow.

Link had heard Ilia and Bo arguing back and forth about him, one night after sitting in the pastures of Fado's field. It was just after dusk, early evening.

"He hasn't been right since you seen him! What did you do?" Bo's voice had always been formidable, but now it was frightening.

"I didn't do anything! He isn't the same anymore! He never will be!" Ilia's voice sounded choked up. "He's changed so much since leaving, haven't you noticed? Link is gone."

"I know you said something to him! The poor lad looks brokenhearted, Ilia. He looks right tortured. He looks so much thinner than usual, I don't think he's eatin' at all. Please, Ilia, set him straight, talk to him." Bo sounded like he was pleading with her, but her voice grew hard.

"I don't know him anymore. He has a different heart with the same face."

"You're being foolish!" there was silence to greet him, followed by loud footsteps and crying.

"Father, I don't know him anymore. He isn't the Link I fell in love with. He's colder, and he doesn't even talk to me anymore." Ilia's voice, choked with tears, was louder than before, suggesting Bo had left the room.

Wait, Ilia _loved_ him? She failed to mention that…

There was nothing else. It was pure, still, silence.

Link, feeling embarrassed for intruding on their conversation, lowered his head and began to walk back home.

He hadn't known that Ilia was in love with him. If that fact had been known to him, he hadn't have been so blunt. Now he'd destroyed her as much as she'd destroyed him. Only, he wasn't in love with her.

Was he?

No, he surely wasn't. He didn't think about her like he thought of Zelda. Now that Link really thought about it, he wasn't sure he had ever loved Ilia. They were only friends. And he'd ruined even that.

She had given him her heart, and he'd taken it and stomped on it. But even that scenario made what he'd done to Ilia seem mild and tame.

Link sat up that night. He didn't think he'd be able to sleep anyway. He stared for countless hours at the crackling flames of the fire under the cooking pot. His eyes, so it seemed, hadn't even closed when he was being shaken awake.

"Link! Link, you thick-headed dullard, wake up!" And there, before him, her visible red eye glinting at him and frustration plain on her face, was the unbelievable.

"Midna?"

"Who else?" she rolled her eyes, then her face became a mask of worry and she gripped his hand in both of hers. "I need your help. Zelda's been poisoned and she's dying. She's only got a day and a half left, and Renado is caring for her now."

"Whoa, whoa, wait. Zelda's been poisoned?" Link caught only those words. As soon as the anxiety crept into his voice, something flickered across Midna's face, but it was gone before he could determine what it was.

"I need the prayers of the Great Fairy to heal her before it's too late." she said.

"You mean the Fairy's Tears?"

"Yes, yes those."

"They're in my pack." Link stood and crossed the room to the door, where hung a haversack. He dug through it for a moment, then drew forth the bottle. Inside was the soft pink liquid that contained the prayers of the Great Fairy.

Midna flitted across to his side and motioned for him to go outside. He looked at her strangely, then complied.

It was not yet dawn, but the first rays of sun were lightening in the east.

"What's up?" Midna followed his gaze.

"Do I have to come?" His voice was blunt and expressionless.

"Well, no, but I just thought-" she stopped. "I just thought you'd want to."

"Oh. Well, can you come back the day after tomorrow?" He handed her the bottle with the Tears. "I have something I need to clear up by then."

"You haven't killed some other giant beast, have you?" Midna grinned, then frowned. He usually would have laughed, but he didn't. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He sounded distracted.

"I guess I'll see you later." Midna warped away, leaving him standing there, watching the rising sun.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What will come next, a chapter in Ilia's World!

But she's still not a major character. Just a major influence.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Ilia opened her eyes tentatively, as though afraid. During the argument with her father the night before, she had broken down and sobbed uncontrollably, and, despite everything, she wished more than ever that Link was there to comfort her.

Ilia felt embarrassed about bringing up the fact that she loved Link. Loved. Past tense. No more. Never again.

She rubbed sleep from her eyes and dressed, remembering with a jolt that today was the Midsummer Festival.

Oh, bloody hell.

She would have to face him down today. She needed to speak to him.

Ilia sighed. The sooner the Festival was over, the better. She knew she had to face Link today, no matter how she wished she didn't.

She brushed her brown-blonde hair slowly and deliberately. Her lack of shoes had never been a problem, but today her feet seemed sore, despite the thick calluses on the soles.

_Maybe,_ she thought hopefully, _It's a sign not to go out today. _But her brain told her otherwise. It was only nerves. Unfortunately.

Ilia stretched. The Midsummer Festival was always a grand affair, during which merchants from all across the world and friends from distant lands came together to laugh and play games and just be happy.

Ilia had a number of good friends among the merchants, and she knew it would be stupid to stay home. The whole village had been decked up for this sole purpose, and it was only once a year, if the weather permitted.

She sighed and descended the stairs. Her father was already out and about, it seemed, as he wasn't in the kitchen, so she ate a hurried breakfast of toast and blackberry jam, grabbed her bag with her money in it, and went outside.

"Ilia!" one of Ilia's merchant friends, a black-haired girl in a kimono and geta sandals, rushed toward her and embraced her. "You have no idea how I've missed Hyrule! The forest has always been my favorite land to go!"

"Please, Yue, I'm getting strangled." Ilia laughed. Yue released her, grinning from ear to ear.

"It's wonderful to see you again! The place where I'm currently staying is just off the mainland, an island, really. It's called Alvarna, have you heard of it?"

"No, I can't say I have. Oh, Yue, I love your new kimono!" Ilia squealed.

Yue twirled around effortlessly, showing off her new kimono. It was a light, airy blue, with reds, greens, and a few blacks coloring blossoms embroidered in the silky fabric.

"You like it? A young man strayed into Alvarna last month, he gave me the idea. His name is Kyle. He's really handsome, too…" Yue playfully punched Ilia's shoulder. "You'd take to him, Ilia, you would."

"Oh, are you referring to the old Ilia-Needs-A-Man Conspiracy? Dear Goddesses, Yue, that was three years ago!"

"Ohhh!" Yue grinned evilly, linking arms with Ilia and walking her down the path through the village. "So you've found a man?"

"I thought I had," Ilia became quiet, and her eyes threatened to let loose the tears of sorrow. "But I guess I was wrong."

"What filthy bastard broke your heart, dear?" Yue snarled. "I'll tear him limb from limb-"

"Oh, Goddesses, here he comes!" Ilia spotted Link walking down the path towards them, the soft morning light glinting off his blue earrings.

Yue rolled her airy blue sleeves up to her elbows and was about to confront him and yell, but Ilia grabbed her hand and dragged her over the stream and behind the waterwheel, Talo and Malo's house.

"You cannot just walk up to someone you don't know and scream at them!" Ilia hissed at her.

"Why? I do it all the time." Yue replied, clearly puzzled.

"Because he's Link!" Ilia said back. "He's seen things that would scare you to death and barely flinched. He's saved our entire world from darkness. He's got, as far as I know, five girls in love with him!"

"Ohhh! And would you, my dear Ilia, be one of those five?"

"Of course not! We were just friends."

"C'mon. The Midsummer Festival is going to start soon," Yue grabbed her hand and they mingled with the crowed pouring down the path. Merchants in garb of every color with bags full of magical items, strange items, rare items, set up their stalls all through the village and into the pasture. Fado had graciously donated the field for the day of celebration.

Yue set up her stall, where she sold rare food dishes, seafood pizza, stew, Chinese manju, and jewelry, gold brooches, ruby rings, and even a Meshilight Ore, from deep within the Meshina Valley, close to where she was currently staying.

Whenever someone showed interest in the Ore, Yue smiled sweetly and said she was holding it for a friend.

Ilia noticed Link keep away from the larger crowds; he had never been great with so many people.

"So, that's him, eh?" Yue said, her large blue eyes trained on Link. "He's really cute. I like the cute, shy type. But, as you say, he's already got a pack of admirers."

Ilia put up with the festivities all day, and even enjoyed herself. Yue would be staying with her for the night, so she was looking forward to that. At noon, when everyone gathered to a long table for lunch, Ilia plucked a huge pink-red rose from a nearby bush and twined the stem in Yue's raven hair.

The Midsummer Festival went on long into the night, and paper lamps on the pond provided light, as well as paper lamps strung into the trees and lining the path.

Ilia knew that the dances were coming; at every Festival, after the sun set, a chorus of people with instruments would play. It was considered romantic and fun. And, as Yue pointed out, since Ilia was one of the more beautiful locals, she would have a few boys asking for a dance.

Yue punched her shoulder as Ilia sat on the grass, in the roots of the tree above Beth's house.

"You aren't gonna dance?"

"I will when someone asks me."

"What if it's Link?"

"Then I will not dance."

"You're so…. tough, Ilia. I've seen four boys eyeing you. And it looks like Link's already got a partner." Yue pointed to Link, who was slowly dancing with a girl about his age, whom she had never seen before.

Ilia stood, and Yue, sensing what was coming, grabbed her arm. "Ilia! You can't just rip his partner away from him! You don't like him, remember? He's just another boy. You don't care, remember?"

Ilia heaved a huge sigh.

"Let's go. I'm tired."

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I'm going to break the cycle a bit more. You know, Zelda, Midna, Link? Well, the next chapter is in Link's World, during the Midsummer Festival. And who is his mysterious dance partner? You'll see.

BTW, did you catch Yue? From Rune Factory 2? the traveling merchant? if you didnt, look it up.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Link woke up late the day of the Midsummer Festival. He put a hand over his eyes and sighed, then got up. He didn't eat breakfast. He wasn't hungry.

Link walked slowly into town, seeing Ilia talking to another girl he knew to be named Yue, a merchant from Alvarna, just off the mainland.

Link saw them duck behind the waterwheel, but didn't bother to follow them. It didn't take a magician to know they were talking about him.

Instead, he went to Fado's field, to help set up the merchants' stalls and the table where they would eat.

The merchants began to come, a large crowd of people, familiar and unfamiliar, new faces and old ones.

Link despised crowds. They made him feel enclosed, trapped. He avoided the larger groups of people, and did not speak.

Of course, some of them knew him from the past years, but his green tunic and hat drew their eyes. Link refused to say how he came by them.

Bo, of course, was eager to tell everyone who would listen about Link's Grand Adventure, as he called it. He added in so much, to Link, it sounded as though it had not happened to himself, but to another.

He let them be. No one would believe that the shy young farm hand had done all those great things, had seen all those horrors, had bested the darkness in the shape of a large gray wolf.

In fact, one older boy, a merchant's son by the name of Numocan, called Link a liar and demanded proof.

"How do we know there is a Twilight world? Yer nothing' but a lying wretch if you can't prove what you said. Where's the Twilight Princess? What about Princess Zelda? And the mighty Master Sword?"

Link had stared Numocan down with an icy gaze, no words, but Numocan yelled out to all. "Link ain't done nothin' o' what he says! He's a liar!"

Link had snapped and broken Numocan's nose with a swift punch. Hardly any momentum had been needed, for Link was much stronger than Numocan, who was, in fact, taller and wider than he was.

Leaving the older boy crying and mopping his nose, Link had walked away to the edge of the stalls.

No one blamed him for breaking Numocan's nose. The elder boy had always been a bully and a nuisance, trying to impress.

Link sat in one of the chairs by the pond, thinking about what Numocan had said. Sure, he'd known nobody would believe it, but it wounded his pride more than he thought.

He kept away from the crowds for the rest of the day. Ilia and Yue seemed like they were having a good time, but whenever Yue caught him looking over at them, she shot him a frosty glare.

Ah, so Ilia had told her. Link supposed it was only natural.

At last, the final rays of the sun kissed the land farewellfor the night, and Link was among those who set paper lanterns out on the pond and high into the trees for light.

Numocan shot him looks of pure loathing, probably hoping Link would fall out of the tree and break his neck, but Link's hands were too sure for a clumsy mistake that foolish.

The dances, in Link's opinion, were the worst part of the Festival. Instruments were played in slow, haunting melodies, and partners would slowly dance in time to the music. Link, of course, was much too shy to ask any girl to dance. It made him feel incredibly foolish.

Instead, he seated himself by one of the huge stone pillars that twisted its way out of the pond, watching.

From across the path, now crowded with people, he could see Ilia, and Yue, talking softly. He saw Ilia's leaf-green eyes trained on him, and lowered his own.

A warm summer breeze ruffled his hair, cold air overwhelmed him for a moment. Then it was gone, and the warmth of summer fell over his shoulders once more. It was as though a door opened and closed again.

He closed his eyes for a moment, dimly aware that someone was walking in front of him. The steps stopped, and he dared to open his eyes.

He was staring at two knee-high boots, brown and splotched with mud.

"Aren't you going to ask me to dance?" It was a girl, with long, chocolate-brown hair and eyes bluer than his own.

"Zelda!" He stood hurriedly and embraced her tightly. She was much thinner and frailer than the last time they had seen one another. "Midna told me you were dying, I-"

"Shh," She placed a single, slender forefinger on his lips. "I'm fine now." She stood back and asked again. "Well? Are you going to ask me to dance?"

"Zelda, would you honor me with a dance?" he bowed low, and Zelda laughed.

"No need for formalities! And yes, of course I will dance with you, but wait a moment, please." She walked over to the musicians, and spoke to them in low tones. There was much nodding and shaking of heads, and Zelda finally humming a tune for them to play.

She walked back over to Link and took his hand, leading him into the center of the dancers. He released one hand from hers and placed it on her waist, and gently pulled her to him. She put her hand on his shoulder just as a song began to play.

It was slow, haunting, and yet beautiful. Zelda, her face so close to his own, whispered in his ear as they began to slowly dance.

"My mother used to play this for me, when I was a child."

"It's beautiful."

They swayed in time to the tune for a long time. He felt Zelda's eyelashes flutter across his ear, and knew her eyes were closed. He chanced a glance across to where Ilia and Yue had been sitting, but Ilia was gone and Yue was dancing with a young merchant to his left.

He sighed, contentedly, yet guiltily.

"What is it?" Zelda could sense this.

"Nothing… It's nothing."

Zelda's eyes remained closed. "I have never been this happy. Not since my parents were killed, all those years ago."

"I have not been this at ease since before I turned into a wolf."

"There has been so much sadness since Ganondorf's disappearance. I have to tell you something." There was a note of unease in her voice.

"I am listening."

"It can wait, can't it? At least until the song is over."

"I'm glad you said that."

They danced to the song until it faded away into the night, and the dancers broke away from their partners.

"Is there any place we can talk privately?" Zelda eyed the other people surrounding them.

"My house. Let's go." Link lead her away from the crowds, and was able to breathe easy again.

He let her in and they sat on the floor in front of the hearth.

"So, what news of Hyrule?"

"I'm afraid it's not good." Zelda sighed. "I fear that Ganondorf has returned." It hung between them for a long moment, until, finally, Link managed to speak.

"Impossible… He died… On the field… I killed him."

"I'm afraid not. He has been visiting you in your dreams, hasn't he? I as well. Midna has the other Portal from her world to ours, that is how she came to be here, but now that I think on it, it seems as though she was safer back in the Twilight."

She paused. "I can feel him. The air is holding bated breath, the ground trembles with fear. I cannot eat, and sleep is ridden with nightmares when I close my eyes. I know he is out there. He sent an assassin to murder me. That is why I was dying, but he managed to get away. I fear for you, he mentioned you. He's coming for you, Link. I know he is."

Link swallowed with difficulty, feeling a knot develop in his stomach.

"As long as you remain in one place," Zelda whispered. "you are in danger."

For a long time, the only thing to be heard was the crackling of the flames in the fireplace, and the whisper of the air under the door. Epona, outside, snorted softly in her sleep, as if dreaming.

"If he comes, then he will die." Link said, clenching his hands into fists. "If he is after me, and you, then Midna must also be in danger. Where is she now?"

"In Kakariko, hiding from Renado and Luda. She saved my life. Had she not come when she did, I would be dead by now."

"Then I must come with you. We can travel fast on horseback."

"If Ganondorf is back," Zelda murmured. "Will you take up the Master Sword once more and strike him down?"

"Yes."

"How soon can we leave?"

"I need to say good-bye before we go. Can you wait here?"

"Yes. I shall be here when you return."

Link stood and left, making his way through the crowd of people to Bo's house. He pounded on the door, and Ilia answered it.

"Oh," she said. "It's you."

"Can I talk to you?" He saw Yue sitting at the table and added, "Alone?"

Yue huffed and stood, walking up the stairs until her thumping steps could not be heard. Link stuttered before getting the words out right.

"I know what you're going to say, how you don't want me here, but I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for everything. I know I can't possibly know how you must be feeling, but my apology is the best I can offer."

Problematic silence prevailed, and then Ilia piped up.

"I should be the one who is sorry. I dumped all my woes on you without reason or warning, and you're staggering because of me. I shouldn't have said all those things at the Spring. I'm sorry."

They embraced, and though it felt slightly awkward, it meant more than anything to both of them.

Link gently pried Ilia's arms from around him and said softly,

"I must leave here. There is an assassin after me and as long as I am here, you nor anyone else is safe."

"When will you be back?" Ilia asked.

Link sighed. "I don't know."

He turned and left her to close the door.

Zelda was there packing what food he had into a haversack when he entered his house, and asked,

"How did it go?"

"Wonderful." was the only answer he would provide.

When the food was packed and his sword and shield strapped to his back securely and comfortably, Zelda saddled up Epona and Link hoisted himself onto her back, taking Zelda's hand and swinging her up behind him.

They left at once.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Midna was bored out of her skull. Sure, she'd come back here to be with Link and Zelda again, but at Zelda's request, Midna had transported the just-healed Zelda to Ordon, where she was sure Link still was.

Why couldn't _she_ have gone? As far as Midna knew, Zelda wasn't in love with Link too… Gods, if this went on, Link would start to have fan clubs.

Luda and Renado had been so surprised to find just the Fairy's Tears and not Link on their doorstep. Midna had remained a shadow, hidden just beyond the light from the open door. She had attached a written message to the bottle this time. It was more subtle than a flaming inscription on the ground:

_Link will come in two days. _

_Complications arose and he was unable to accompany the Tears._

_Do not worry._

_He is perfectly fine where he is._

_Send Zelda to retrieve him._

_I do not wish to be seen._

_Thank you._

Luda had read it aloud, Renado had administered the cure. Much too formal for Midna's taste, very fancy and flouncy. Urgh. It made her want to throw up. If Midna had written the letter from her heart, it would have been laced with swears, sarcasm, and much invisible eye-rolling. But her head told her to be polite, so she gave it, however reluctantly. It was her oh-so important Princess script, not her Midna-As-A-Person script.

Zelda had immediately requested to go and fetch Link as soon as her eyes had opened. It had cause Midna to very nearly laugh out loud.

Now Midna was the one left behind. Very, utterly, alone. Of course, she could try talking to Luda and Renado, but what reaction would she get? No, that was stupid.

She fingered the Pendant of Worlds around her neck. The silver chain that kept the crescent in place seemed to emanate light of its own, while the pendant itself seemed to be swallowing that light.

Midna dropped the Pendant from her fingers and flew idly up to the hot spring above the inn. It was much quieter here, more relaxed. The steam from the water provided perfect cover in case anyone looked out.

She leaned back against the far wall of the spring. Now that she was back in the World of Light, what now? Did she just parade around announcing:

GREETINGS, LIGHT-DWELLERS! I AM THE PRINCESS OF THE TWILIGHT REALM AND I'M HERE BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH LINK, YOUR HERO! SO WEIRD, ISN'T IT? SO, I'D JUST THOUGHT I'D INTRODUCE MYSELF BECAUSE I MIGHT NOT BE GOING BACK TO MY WORLD AND HANGING OUT HERE WITH YOU! SO I'LL SEE YOU AROUND!

No. Way. EVER. It was…… stupid. She didn't need her incredible smarts to tell her that.

The steam curled up to the sky and dissipated, but Midna's mood did not vanish with it. Dawn would soon be breaking, and the lights in the inn had long since went dark. Midna had never really slept, but since returning to the Twilight, she found herself tired and sleepy when she would usually be wide awake. Now was one of those times.

Sleep stole its way to her rose-red eyes, and she fell into a deep and complete slumber up against the wall of the hot spring, among the steam and the stars.

And in falling asleep, she condemned herself, Link, and Zelda.

A dark figure stalked slowly down the center of the dirt road. It was cloaked, hooded, and seemed to emanate darkness. The stray chickens fell silent and tripped over one another in their hurry to get out of his way.

He rapped thrice upon the inn door, which was opened by a sleepy-eyed Renado with a blinking Luda behind him.

"Good evening, sir," Renado said, opening the door wider. "If you are seeking a room, we have one open."

"It isss not resssst I sssseek, but people." His voice carried an ominous hiss, and Luda recoiled behind her father. "I have heard Renado the shhhaman is a friend of the Hero, Link. I have a great need to ssspeak to him. And the Princessss Zelda, asss well asss the Princessss Midna of the Twilight."

"I am afraid I cannot help you. I am Renado, but you must have been falsely informed. The Hero has more important things to do than visit a nearly-deserted village. I bid you good night."

Renado tried to shut the door, but the stranger gripped it and forced it back open with a single hand. His hand was grotesque and bony, with unnaturally long fingers and black, pointed fingernails. The flesh on his hand was a sickly green, mottled with black and purple, like a bruise.

"I will make thisss sssimple for you, Shhhaman." He nodded his hood toward Luda, still cowering behind Renado. "Tell me where the Hero isss, or the girl diesss."

Luda's dark eyes grew wide with fright, but Renado growled,

"You shall not touch her."

"Then where are Link and Zelda? Every sssecond wasssted is a sssecond off my patience. Your daughter's life will end if I go unanssswered."

Luda could stand it no longer.

"Do not tell him, father! Link and Zelda are more important than I am!" Her face was defiant rather than fearful.

"You try me, girl? Then you will die now." The stranger threw the door open with a crash, knocking Renado's head against the wall. He fell silent, a trickle of blood showing under his dark hair.

Luda back up a few steps before racing up the stairs, the stranger at her heels. Luda shut the door to the bedroom, but knew it would not hold him for long. She looked around herself wildly, searching for a means of escape, but saw none. Not even a window.

She heard a crack and saw that the stranger's pointed black nails had pierced the wood of the door. It was only seconds before it gave.

She picked up a small chair, finding it heavier than she had thought, and waited until, with a snarling roar, the stranger broke through the door, his hood still up, and crouched defensively when he saw she had the chair.

Luda masked her fear with ferocity, and they began to circle. When her back was to the open door, Luda heaved the chair at her adversary, catching him unaware, and bolted through the door as he fell, slamming the broken door behind her.

She leapt over the rail to the floor, and shook her father desperately. His eyes opened and his fingers weakly brushed her face.

"Luda… Find Link…… Warn him…"

"I will, Father."

"Go, hurry… Luda…" His head dropped. Luda heard the furious shouting of her enemy on the floor above, and opened the door, fleeing down the dirt road, unsure where she was going, but knowing she had to leave.

Tears stung her eyes. Her father might be dead. She knew she had no one to blame but the stranger, but she blamed herself. She should have shut up.

Luda's feet pounded the road as she ran, the tears coming fast.

She must find Link.


	17. Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Zelda, seated on Epona behind Link, had fallen asleep shortly before dawn, her arms wrapped around him, her head between his shoulder blades. Link found it oddly comforting, knowing she was there.

Hyrule Field in the daytime was bright and alive, but at night it was a different story. As the tales went, 'The dead walk when the moon shines bright, the Field becomes home to things long lifeless, and if ye seek to cross it when the moon rules the sky, than ye will join that ghostly host.' Very eerie.

Link knew they were getting close to Kakariko, but Epona was as tired as Zelda. He hated to be hard on Epona, so he dismounted and gently pulled Zelda off with him.

Zelda woke with a start, but smiled. "Good morning," she said, yawning.

"We're almost there. It's just another hour or so." Link and Zelda sat down on the cool green grass, and Epona went to her knees, nearly immediately falling asleep.

Link sat in silence for a moment, then stood. "I'm going to get breakfast. Stay here, okay?"

"As you wish." Zelda yawned again. "But we really shouldn't stay long."

"I know." Link walked off into the brightening light. He suddenly felt like he was being watched, a strange, awful feeling. As if someone was laughing at him. Or mocking him. And then he heard the voice.

"Help! Someone, please help me!" It was a girl's voice. Link drew his sword and brandished his shield, running in the direction of the screams.

It was a group of rogue Bulbins, the green goblins, attacking a girl. She toppled before Link could get a good look at her. The Bulbins closed in around her, beating her with their clubs.

Link swiftly thrust his sword through one of the Bulbins, killing it instantly. The other Bulbins, ceased their ruthless attack on the girl toward him, but he easily cut them down, one after the other.

The girl was on her side, her clothes splotched with her own blood, her short black hair stained with it.

He gently turned her onto her back, and recoiled, gasping at the familiar face.

"Luda?"

She was deathly white, and whatever of the skin on her face wasn't white was bloody and cut. She didn't answer him.

Link opened her mouth and bent his ear to it, listening for breath, and heard a small, short, faint rattle at the back of her throat in reply.

Luda wasn't dead. Yet.

Link scooped her up and carried her back to Zelda, who stood and rushed over to him when she saw the limp figure in his arms.

"What happened to her?" Zelda asked when he set her on the grass.

"She was attacked by a rogue group of Bulbins. She isn't yet dead, but I don't know what she was doing so far from Kakariko, and coming to a place as dangerous as Hyrule Field."

"What possessed her?" Zelda cradled Luda's head, and the dark eyes flickered open, Luda's arms, flailing weakly, scratched Zelda's face, but the princess did not flinch at the stinging blow.

"Luda? What are you doing out here?" She asked gently.

"Stranger…… hurt my father…… was looking for Link…. and you…… and someone called Midna…" Luda's winced and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. Zelda brushed Luda's bangs out of her eyes.

"Did the strange wear a hood? Did he hiss on every 'S'? He was the one who nearly killed me."

"Yes… that- that is him…… My father…. is he alright…?"

"I know not, Luda. Sleep. We're going to take you to someone who will care for you. Link will then see if your father is alright." The tensed features in Luda's face relaxed, and she let out a long breath.

Zelda set Luda's bloody head on the grass and stood. "The assassin who came for me nearly killed her. Renado may very well be dead. I will take Luda to Ordon. Can you see if Renado is still alive? Or if Midna is? As far as I know, Midna has not revealed herself to Luda and Renado. It was probably best. But will you see if Renado is alive? I can tell he is invaluable to Luda and to you."

Link could only nod.

Zelda mounted Epona and Link sat Luda in front of her. "I will come for you if you and Midna have not returned to Ordon by sunrise tomorrow."

Epona, huffy at being woken, had not objected to carrying Zelda, and Luda, who weighed not nearly enough to count as a person, was no problem, but was eager to be gone.

Link took Zelda's hand and gently squeezed it. "I will be back by sunrise. With Midna. If the assassin is there, he will pay."

Zelda smiled weakly, and Link released her hand. With a whinny, Epona thundered across the Field, over a hill, and was lost to his sight.

Link turned and faced Death Mountain, looming above him, taunting him. He began to jog for it without a second thought.

The village was quiet. Eerily quiet. Even the Gorons had not come to stand their daily guard by the buildings.

Everything was holding bated breath, Link could tell. Even the birds, usually so chatty, were dead silent.

He approached the inn, noting the puncture marks in the wood, as if from darts. Slumped against the wall behind the door was Renado.

His face was ghostlike and waxy, as if the skin was stretched over the bones beneath it. Dried blood coated one side of his face. His eyes were closed, and his hands, when Link gently took one, was icy.

"Renado," Link softly said. "It's me."

There was no reply.

Renado was undeniably dead.

Link felt hot tears beginning to blur his vision. He set down the cold hand of his friend and stood, the sorrow being replaced by a burning anger.

He climbed the stairs, roughly wiping his tears away, and kept his sword in hand. The room full of beds was empty, ransacked; beds upturned all around, the wardrobes against the wall knocked over. What had he been searching for? Midna? There was no sign of her anywhere.

Then, as he was leaving, dust fell from the ceiling and onto his shoulder. Link whirled around, sword raised defensively, but it was just a large hole to the roof outside. A hole undoubtedly caused by the assassin in his escape.

He turned again to the stairs, but a sparkling on the floor caught his eye. Half-buried under a torn pillow's feathers was a chain that seemed to emanate light.

Link crouched to the ground an took the chain in two fingers, gently drawing it out of the wreckage.

It was a pendant, shaped like a crescent moon, that apparently drank in the light the chain set loose. On the crescent were engraved symbols, similar to the ones carved on the doors in the Twilight Realm. And three words among the symbols: Love, Courage, and Destiny.

What could it mean?

Link pocketed the pendant in a pouch on his belt and returned to Renado. He sighed and ran a hand over his face. He couldn't just leave the body. It had to be buried.


	18. Chapter Seventeen

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The night before Link found Luda in Hyrule Field and Renado's body in the Elde Inn, Midna had never before been more afraid in her life.

She was woken suddenly by the crash of the door opening, and the angry hissing of some creature. She couldn't warp inside anything, so she sat, stunned, listening to the sounds of struggle and Luda's frightened whimpers.

Midna flitted down from the hot spring to the roof and pressed her long, pointed ear against the shingles. She heard another crash, and curses mixed with the hissing of the creature. Moments later, Luda, stumbling, ran as fast as she could from the inn and out of sight.

Midna listened harder for the hisses of whatever had tried to kill the girl, but they had silenced. Had Luda killed it?

No. A cloaked figure burst through the roof inches from her face, scattering shingles and scraps of his own black cloak. Midna was thrown back against the stairs leading to the hot spring, and the figure, perched just beside the hole in the ceiling, dipped in a low mock bow.

"Greetingsss, Twilight Princessss."

How did he know who she was?! Thoughts raced through Midna's head as she crouched defensively, waiting for his attack. But he just carried on talking. "I have waited sssso long for thisss moment, my little friend."

"You are no friend of mine, you freaky slimebag." Midna's insulting nature took over her rude reply. "Obviously, only my friends can call me friend."

"But you have not even ssssseen my fasssssse, Your Highnessss."

"If it's as ugly as your voice, then I don't need to."

His hands, sickly, mottled green in the faint light from below, reached for his hood. Midna found herself staring at the revolting flesh, and imagined what it could possibly smell like.

"What happened to your skin, creature? Looks like you're a zombie. You need a little moisturizer. Does it smell as terrible as it looks? If it does, warn me or something before you strangle me." Midna pinched her nose with two fingers, mocking the stranger.

"Actually, I believe you will find me quite familiar to you, Princessss." He drew back the hood, exposing a face Midna knew all too well.

"No!" Midna backed up a few steps, and in her fear morphed back into her true form. "It can't be you!" She turned away from him to warp away, but found herself facing him. He had somehow transported himself behind her in a split second.

"But it isss me, Midna. Why isss that sssso hard to believe?" he began to advance on her.

"Because you aren't evil! You wouldn't murder my friends!"

"You have no idea of what I would and would not do, little Midna."

Midna backed up away from him again, slipping and falling through the hole in the roof, losing the Pendant of Worlds as she tumbled.

She landed hard on one of the beds, and he leapt down after her. Midna jumped up from the bed and backed herself against the wall, but there was no where else for her to run.

"Cooperate, Midna, and Link will die painlesssssly."

"You - you - you _MONSTER!" _Midna pointed at one of the beds, and it flew at him, but he slashed it apart with his mottled hands, spilling the feathers and the wood everywhere. The other beds in turn took off at him, but his sword like fingernails and long fingers cut them to ribbons like blades.

"You lying, deceitful, scummy, slimy, rotten, decomposed, malevolent, foul, loathsome, revolting, vile, nasty, wicked snake!" Midna spit at him.

"Your wordsss hurt me, Midna." he stepped purposefully on the wreckage of what had once been beds. "Jusssst come quietly."

"In hell!" Midna tried again to fire him with Twili magic, but he pinned her wrists against the wall.

"You are going to die, Midna. He isss the only way. Ganondorf is our friend. He hassss alwaysssss been our ally."

Midna mustered up all the dignity she had and spat in his face. In return, he smashed her head against the wall, so she crumpled at his feet.

"Rot in hell, Venivre. You have doomed us all." she managed to choke as her brother's awful laugh filled her ears.

"Ssssleep well, little sssissster." was the last thing she heard before darkness took her.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Renado was not buried in the Kakariko Cemetery. He was buried along the edge of the lookout building, forever watching over his village. Link knew he would have liked that. His grave was marked with a tombstone that simply read:

_**Here Rests Renado**_

_**Beloved Father and Friend**_

_**Shaman of Kakariko**_

_**May Your Soul Find Peace**_

_**You Shall Not Be Forgotten**_

Link could not weep for him. His tears had been forfeit long ago. With the burial complete, Link murmured a prayer for Renado and briskly left the village.

The walk from Kakariko to Ordon was about a day's, if he was not held up by the creatures who dwelled there.

He was in luck. The monsters, even the rogue Bulbins, were gone. Not even a goblin. The birds were quiet. The golden bugs' usual twinkle was softer, and it made Link uneasy. The field had never been so quiet. It was unnatural. It made him uneasy.

By the time the sun had set, Link was facing his home. He knew Zelda had probably taken Luda to Bo, since they had no shamen here.

He guessed correctly.

Luda was laid on Ilia's bed, her cuts and scratches cleaned and bandaged.

"What happened to her?" Bo asked later, once Link had sat down at the table. Zelda was there, sipping at a cup of tea, and Ilia was looking anywhere but at Link. "Y'know, when Luda was born, Renado made me her godfather. Zelda told me that you found her being attacked by some Bulbins, and that she was nearly dead when you drove them off. If something's happened to Renado, then it's my job to look after her. Why haven't you brought him with you?"

"He - he -" Link struggled to speak correctly. "He's -"

Bo held up a hand and Link closed his mouth. "Don't tell me. Renado's dead, ain't he?"

Link nodded weakly.

"Do you know who killed him?"

"Yes," Zelda spoke up. "It was an assassin, coming for us. I was nearly killed by him before, but Midna saved me. Link," Zelda turned to him. "Did you manage to find Midna?"

"No," Link pulled the strange pendant from the pouch on his belt. "But I did find this. Does it mean anything to you?" He lay it on the table.

Zelda gasped. "Dear Goddesses," she whispered, touching it tentatively with a finger. "Where did you find that?"

"It was in the Elde Inn. The room with the beds was torn to shreds, and this was there. Why? What is it?"

"It is the only other known portal from our world to the Twilight World. Though the Mirror was in our world, the Pendant of Worlds was left in the Twilight Realm. This is how Midna came back. If you found this, and not her…"

"Hang on, you two," Bo said. "Who's this Midna character?"

"She is a friend to us." Link replied. "She saved my life on more than one occasion. She is a Twili Being, though she is half Light Being as well."

"She has saved us all." Zelda added. "Midna is the bravest person I know. I have a strong feeling that she is in grave danger."

"So she is the friend you told me about?" Ilia said softly. "The one who meant more to you than nearly anything?"

Link flushed. "I never said that-"

"More to you than someone you've known your whole life?" Ilia's bright green eyes were full of tears. She roughly pushed back her chair and went upstairs to check on Luda, faster than she needed to.

Link felt his ears turn red, and cursed the fact that he was Hylian, and not Ordonian, whose ears were round instead of long and pointed.

Bo sighed. "She'll come around. Don't worry about it."

"I think Link and I should go search for Midna. If she is in danger, then we need to help. We owe our lives to her." Zelda was wise enough to change the subject, seeing that Link was on the verge of leaving the house. Seeing that he wasn't really paying any attention, she added, "Immediately."

Link caught her look and relaxed in his chair, however reluctantly. Zelda stood and placed her empty cup down on the counter, by the sink.

The next moments were like lightning.

A steel-tipped arrow smashed one of the windows, and only by diving to one side did Zelda manage to escape it with a grazed arm and a ripped sleeve. Link had cried out as the arrow buried itself in his shoulder, the force of it knocking him flat. Bo had yelled, and Ilia had come crashing down the stairs.

"What happened?" Ilia saw the arrow. "Link, you're hurt!"

Zelda knelt by him and pulled the arrow from his arm, and dislodged a small note from its shaft. Her brows frowned as she read it.

Link was still breathing heavy, realizing only then that had he been sitting a little more to the left, he would be dead. Unaware of the burning pain in his arm, he got off his back and examined the arrow. It was not Bulbin, Hylian, or Ordonian. The metal tip was not known to Hyrule at all.

Zelda stood from her knees and read the note aloud. " 'Hero and Princess: if you are not killed by this arrow, then meet me in the Ordon Spirit Spring at dawn tomorrow. Midna is in my custody and I will kill her if you do not turn yourselves over. Ganondorf wishes an audience with you as well as Midna, and it would be a shame to kill you before he has the chance. But if at dawn you are not present, Midna will die and so will you. I look forward to meeting you, Hero. Signed, Venivre, an eternal servant to Ganondorf, King of Light and Shadow.' "

Link's breathing slowed as he listened. _He had Midna. _

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

And what will happen in the chapters to come? Fear not, my readers! It's not over yet. For you LinkxMidna fans out there, myself included, I salute you.


	20. Chapter Nineteen

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Dawn had not yet broken when Link awoke from a restless sleep. Zelda had spent the night at the mayor's to watch over Luda, who had come under a fever, and was surely awake by now.

Link got up and dressed hurriedly, buckling his sword and shield to his back and pulling on his boots and gauntlets. His hat was pulled on, and lastly, he picked up the Pendant of Worlds. He stared at the crescent, engraved with those three words, and clasped it around his neck, tucking it deep into the folds of his tunic.

Link opened the door as Zelda was walking up the path from the main body of the village. She called when she saw him, "Dawn will be breaking soon, so I was coming to wake you. Luda's fever broke last night, so she'll be fine. She hasn't been awake long enough to be told of Renado's death, so when she wakes I'm leaving that sad duty to Bo."

Link was wordless as he climbed down the ladder and adjusted his sword. Since destroying Ganondorf, he had returned the Master Sword to its rightful place in the Sacred Grove. The Ordon sword would have to do, though it was anything but as powerful as the sacred blade. Midna was the only one who could teleport, Zelda's power was just too limited. He would have to fight without it.

Zelda noticed his discomfort and quickly discovered the cause. "It's the Master Sword, isn't it? Well, I've been practicing with my Triforce power since before Zant kept my city hostage, during my captivity, and after Ganondorf's death, and I've learned a few tricks." She upturned one corner of her mouth in a grin and snapped her fingers. In a small flash, Link was standing before the pedestal in the Sacred Grove. The Master Sword was glowing, as if anticipating his touch.

"Zelda-! How… how…." he stuttered, his fingertips lightly brushing the top of the hilt, inlaid with a pure aquamarine.

Zelda smiled solemnly. "I've been learning for years. But the energy it consumes is immense. I can only attempt it three times a month, and even then I fall. Link," she gently placed a hand on his arm. "take the sword."

Link placed both hands around the hilt, tightened his grip ever so slightly, and pulled the sword from its stone sheath. Sunlight glinted off vibrant, clear steel, said to have been crafted from a fallen piece of the moon. It felt warm and comfortable in Link's hand, as if it had always been there, and always would be.

Link set the Ordon sword on the ground and slid the Master Sword onto his back, feeling the familiar weight, and he felt whole again.

Zelda snapped her fingers and the small flash brought them back to Link's treehouse. Link, turning toward the wood, only barely saw Zelda stagger on her feet, but she quickly recovered herself and he decided not to bother her about it.

The first rays of light caught the pure, crystal-blue water of the Spring just so, and it was a magnificent sight to behold. But in the center of that beauty was a cloaked figure, a bow strapped to his back, supporting a weak and half-alive Midna in her true form, waiting for them both.

"So you're Venivre," Zelda called to him, she and Link ankle-deep in the cool water. "I am afraid I cannot say I am glad to see you."

"I could sssay the sssame for you, Princesss. Hero," Venivre cocked his head in Link's direction. "I have waited a long time for thisss. Your deedsss are legendary. What a shhhame that I will not be the one to kill you."

Link was barely listening. His eyes were on Midna, whose back was to him.

"Ganondorf, King of Light and Shhhadow, has claimed that honor." Venivre turned to face them, his blue and black skin shining, his eyes black instead of red, like Midna's. He dropped Midna, who had lost consciousness long before, to the water, and leapt forward like a cat, catching Link and Zelda both off guard. Though surprise, they both backed out of Venivre's clawed reach.

"You ssstole my sssissster from me! Ignorant Light-Dwellers, you took away the sssissster I know! YOU DESSSTROYED THE TWILIGHT PRINCESSSS!"

His hand caught Zelda on the back of her head, knocking her to the clear blue water. Link's raised sword was cast aside with a flick of Venivre's hand, and his foot caught Link in the chest, winding him and knocking him flat.

Venivre, his face set in an ugly frown, stood over Zelda, bow drawn, arrow notched. "I'm sssure our king will not begrudge me your death, Princessss. This isss persssonal for me. You have murdered the sssissster I know."

"You are no kin of mine, you scummy, disgusting, uncivilized, foul, evil cockroach!" Midna struggled to her feet and morphed into her imp form, firing magic at Venivre with surprising speed and ferocity, vainly trying to be matched by her adversary.

Link and Zelda, on their feet again, could only watch. If they tried at all to hit Venivre, a miss could easily kill little Midna.

One spell caught Venivre off guard, and he stumbled. It was the opening Midna needed. She leapt above him and brought her hands down, spewing Twili power onto Venivre's face.

His scream of agony woke the entire village. Midna's Twilit Fyre, consequential when gone wrong, but deadly on an enemy, had killed him. In his dying breaths, he managed to croak, all traces of hissing gone,

"He will come…… You have not…. won… Why…… Midna…. You are my sister… I was only… protecting…. you……" His face, once black and light blue, was burnt a fiery red from the fiendish curse, distorted and bloody.

Midna stared at his body and turned to them.

"He was my brother. I thought he'd turned against me, but he was only trying to protect me?" Her true form was sad and bowed, and Link felt so incredibly awful for her, he wrapped her in an embrace. It must have been terrible, to kill her own brother.

Midna, tough, sarcastic Midna, fought back her tears but didn't push Link away. She had not been held for a long time.

"It's not over yet," Zelda eyed Venivre's corpse. "He said it was not."

"We can't wait," Link said, releasing Midna. "Ganondorf wants me, so I should find him."

"Not without us," Midna said, keeping her tears in check; if she wiped at her eyes it would be clear that she was crying. She needed to look dignified, especially in front of Link.

"I beat him before, I can beat him again." Link retorted. Of course, he wasn't entirely sure this was true. Ganondorf might have become stronger than the last time they had fought.

Midna scowled, hands on her hips. There was no arguing now. Once Midna's mind was set, there was nothing anyone in a trillion years could do about it.


	21. Chapter Twenty

CHAPTER TWENTY

Zelda, Link, and Midna returned to Bo's. Midna remained in her true form for formalities, and an imp suddenly appearing out of someone's shadow would probably make the poor man faint.

Bo was, of course, stunned to see Midna at first, she being from the Twilight Realm, and happening to be its princess. And her skin was light blue. Her hair also happened to be a vibrant shade of orange. And her eyes were red. Very, very red. But his surprise easily shifted to curiosity, and he and Midna quickly became friends.

Ilia was out of sight.

Long after Bo had fallen asleep, the trio laid out schemes and plans for Ganondorf when he revealed himself.

"I say we wait for him and decapitate him," Midna said seriously, though her rose-colored eyes were chuckling. "That'll keep him from coming back."

"Your idea has more holes in it than dirt on the road," Zelda laughed. "Maybe we should just let him come to us."

"I find myself agreeing with Midna," Link grinned. "Ganondorf's becoming an increasingly annoying pest. I say kill him and be done with it."

"Really," Zelda huffed. "You two sound like a couple of assassins."

It was all too much. They burst out laughing. It was Link who glanced at Bo's bed beneath the staircase up to Ilia's room, and bit his lip to cut off his laughter.

"Shh!" he hissed at the two women, who were still snickering. "We'll wake them up!"

Midna shut her mouth but was on the verge of bursting out again, and one quick glance at the other two confirmed they were as well. She wiped away tears of merriment from her cyan-tinged face and damask eyes, but still nearly exploded from the clear struggle Zelda was going through to keep from blowing up as well.

Once they had all calmed down, Midna itched at a spot on her throat, saying, "Honestly though, we really need a plan." Then she started. HER PENDANT! "Hey," she said as coolly as she could manage. "Did either of you pick up a crescent-moon pendant with Twili markings on it?"

Link reached into the folds of his tunic at his neck and pulled out the Pendant of Worlds. "You mean this? I found it at the Elde Inn, with all the wreckage." He held it out to her, and Midna took it, clasping it around her own throat.

"I thought I'd lost it. I used this to get back here." Its comfortable weight fell into the dip between her collarbones, making her feel whole again. "Apparently, it's got unspeakable power."

"I know," Zelda said softly. "Link showed it to me when he found it. I can only wonder how you acquired it." She smiled. "I'm hoping desperately that you didn't steal it. If it happened to slip your mind, you're a princess."

"Jeez Zelda. What kind of princess do you think I am? Of course I didn't steal it. It would make me look like a filthy little thief. I'd be setting a bad example for all my people." Midna was indignant.

Link stifled a yawn. "I say we plot tomorrow and go to sleep."

Midna grinned and Zelda replied. "I second that. Almighty Twilight Princess, what is your opinion?"

"Does it matter?" Midna looked wistfully out the window behind Zelda, whose back was to the door. "I'm already outnumbered."

"Okay then," Link stood, facing Midna. "I'm heading home. I'm assuming that you and Zelda are staying here?"

"Unfortunately, all-powerful Hero, I'm quite happy to say…" She closed her eyes, hands held up, a wicked grin spreading over her face. "Wait for it…… You are most definitely, undeniably, certainly WRONG. I will be staying in the forest. I mean, I spent a long time in the woods as an imp, and I've become quite familiar with them. I know you're going to say how dangerous the forest is at night, but trust me: I've had plenty more experience than you, you know, assassins, all that, and even though I'm your age, Hero, I find myself much more mature than you. Plus, I want to walk you home." She finished with a smile, and Link, who had been stunned silent through her speech, shrugged and smiled back.

"Er, okay." He and Midna bid good-bye to Zelda, who was seconds away from laughing at him, and left the mayor's residence.

"So, how has the Light been since I left?" Midna asked, the soft bubbling of the stream beneath the bridge adding to the nighttime calls.

"Lonely," Link replied. "It felt strange without you. Er, I mean, um, it's been alright. But it never will be the same." He blushed.

"I was tired of the Twilight. I mean, everyone has been saying hi to me or showering me with presents, or freaking out on me for abandoning them. I was overwhelmed, and I missed you, you big dork." She punched his shoulder playfully. "I missed you all." She suddenly thought of the day she shattered the Mirror with her tear. She'd been so close to telling him she loved him.

_Oh please, _she silently begged. _Please don't ask me what I was going to say when I broke the Mirror. Please don't ask or I'll rip your head off. Nah, I couldn't. I love you, remember? Just don't ask. Please. _

"What were you going to say when you broke the Mirror? I know you were going to tell me something."

_DAMN!!!_

"I… I…" Midna honestly had expected him to ask, but all the same she was caught off guard.

"You don't have to tell me, I was only wondering." Link lowered his cerulean gaze, flushed as if he was embarrassed.

"I…… I was going to say… that I didn't want to leave." Okay, that was a half-truth. Close enough. But never on earth would she just outright admit 'Oh, I was going to tell you that I love you. No biggie.' It was signing her own death warrant.

He shrugged. "I didn't want you to leave either." He was so cute, the way he avoided her probing rose gaze. But it frustrated her as well. What did he mean?

"I know, but staying here with you and Zelda and everyone else would be selfish. I needed to see to my people, they needed me to lead them. I couldn't stay here, no matter how much I wanted to."

They were now in front of Link's house, but they had stopped just before the ladder, facing each other. Link was just barely taller than her.

"It was quiet without you," his voice was hard to hear. "I couldn't really believe that it was over and you were gone. It felt like a dream. Why did you destroy the Mirror?"

"Because I wanted to protect you from my world!" Midna burst out. "It was the only way to keep you safe! Link, you ignorant bonehead, it's so overly obvious I can't believe you don't know!" Her voice rose to a shout.

"Don't know what?" he demanded, almost yelling as loud as she was.

"I love you!"

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So unexpected, wasn't it?


	22. Chapter Twenty One

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

"Wh-what?" Link recoiled as if Midna had just struck him. Wait a minute, did she just say what he thought she said?

Midna, her light blue skin blushing a delicate indigo, stood her ground. "Are you deaf and stupid? I said I love you."

Link's head was awash with questions, comebacks, emotions, and above it all, his mind was screaming at him, _Tell her you love her! Tell Midna you love her! _But he couldn't. His throat seized up.

Midna bit her lip, her bright ruby eyes become glassy with tears. What was she doing? Had she taken his silence for rejection? No, no, no! This was going all wrong! _Damn!_

She turned away, her long black cloak swishing the fallen leaves on the ground as well as the pine needles. Her fingers roughly wiped at her face, but Link knew she was crying.

_Do something you idiot!_

_Kiss her!_

_Call her back!_

_Tell her you love her!_

_KISS HER!_

Voices screeched at him in his head, his joints frozen as he watched her walk towards the darkened forest. When he finally swallowed and called after her, she was almost out of sight.

"Midna!" She turned, but not so he could see her face. "Midna, please, don't cry." He could think of nothing else to say.

"I'm not crying," she snapped. "Dust or something got in my eyes, that's all."

"Please don't go." he said softly, but she heard him and began walking back, her claret eyes cast down. Her fingers picked absently at one another, as if they needed something to keep themselves busy.

"What is it," her voice was harsh.

"I - I…" Damn, Link just say it! Three easy words. But he couldn't say them. What was wrong with him?!

"If you have nothing to say, then good-night, Hero. Maybe I shouldn't have come back at all." Midna turned, but Link grabbed her arm and swung her back around to face him. Her bright red eyes were filled with tears.

"I…" _SAY IT!_

"Let go of me!" Midna tried to pry his finger off of her arm, but he kept a firm grip. "Let go!"

"Midna… I… I love you." There, he said it. Link released her arm, but she didn't go. She stared at him, mouth open.

"Wh-what?"

"I love you," Link said with more confidence. There, it was out. They just happened to have accidentally fallen in love while they were saving Hyrule and the Twilight Realm.

"You do?" Midna began to smile. A beautiful, wide smile spread itself across her face, lighting up the darkness.

"Yes," he replied, knowing there wasn't much more he could say. It was all out. There. Done. "I have for a long time, I just didn't know what it was."

Before Midna left for the forest and Link went inside, they kissed. It was awkward, but, in all other respects, absolutely perfect.


	23. Chapter Twenty Two

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

From Ganondorf's POV just 2 c what its like

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I have waited a very long time for my moment of triumph. The year of anticipating the blood of my enemies on my hands is invigorating. I hate, with every particle of my being, that stupid boy, the arrogant imp, and the sickening princess. Ignorant whelps that dare defy me, who has every right to rule this world. They are nothing but children, as intelligent as dirt, who know nothing of power and what to do in the presence of it.

_My_ power should rule the throne of Hyrule.

_My_ power should be significant enough to kill them all.

_My _power is more than that of a boy.

I waste time with my threats. Action is imminent, but where to begin is more difficult. The so-called Twilight princess blocks my attempts on her life at every turn, and even using her own brother against her has failed.

The conceited _Hero _I have left alone. I will slit his throat when no one will flank him. When no one is alive to stand with him.

Yes. Already my heart races in excitement at the prospect of watching him die. The dreams I cursed him with will come true.

He will suffer, and his blood will water the ground beneath him, and I will be there to laugh at him as his death takes him.

Link's fate has already been decided. All of their destinies lie with me, and every future promises a slow and painful end.

Especially the Twilight princess's.

I find myself wondering if I despise her more than the others. She dared to deny me even after all that I had done trying to break her. She is arrogant, selfish, foolish, stupid, and ignorant. The assassins were only small-time. She will die more painfully than anyone thought to be possible. And she will endure it for my entertainment.

I can almost taste the laughter of her pain, and my victory. How sweet revenge truly is. And my revenge will be savored for all it is worth.

Where I am is stifling. I feel enclosed and trapped, walls pressing in around me. And when sleep takes me for brief hours, I can feel Link's sword, the blade of evil's bane, entering my chest to exit my back.

I am disgusted with myself. How can I be afraid of that whelp, that mongrel who calls himself a warrior. But, as the dreams worsen and I awake covered in sweat, I realize I am afraid. I am afraid of death.

But when we finally face one another, I must not show fear, no, I _will_ not. Weakness, even to one as witless as Link, is easily spotted and used against you. I can see how frightened I am, like a cub. A silly little cub. But my strength returns, and my power grows like a waxing moon. I will not fail.

Not this time.

I have waited too long for them to slip through my fingers. Too long to be bested, too long to be humiliated. They shall not escape me.

Tonight I will strike.

Tomorrow she will be dead.

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dont ask who. becuz im not telling. be patient and u will know who dies.


	24. Chapter Twenty Three

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Sleep was not a comfort to Link. It was laced with nightmares, nightmares he awoke from, covered in sweat at the break of dawn. Though he could not fully recall them, the broken pictures in his mind left a clear message: _Go to the Spring. _

But somehow, he shuddered. The Spring? Why? Sure, it was a holy place, but why would Ganondorf be there?

Since day was already dawning, Link lay on his back and relived the kiss he had shared with Midna the night before. He saw then why Ilia and Zelda were no more than friends to him; it was all they were meant to be. Midna was much, much more than that. He cared very much for Zelda, but that was it.

Sunlight began to creep through his window. Feeling slightly woozy, Link rose to find that his hat was missing. That was strange, it was usually just hanging up with his sword. But the hanger where his hat was usually positioned was empty.

And the Master Sword, it was out of its typical spot, set awkwardly to the left. The sheath was lopsided, as if someone has used it.

Link set his hand around the sword, pulling it from the scabbard, only to find that the blade was painted with blood.

His cry of alarm rang out and the sword clattered to the floor. What had been killed? How had this even happened?

Link turned to the fireplace, and written there, to the right of the embers, was written in blood:

_**I AM HERE**_

_**SHE IS DEAD**_

_**SO ARE YOU**_

His breathing shortened and he stepped back. This wasn't possible, this couldn't be happening. It had to be _him_, but Ganondorf? In his own home? Why hadn't Ganondorf killed him in his sleep? Who was dead? What was the blood from? Could he have meant Midna? Was she okay?

Questions burst through his mind and made him dizzy. When he reached for the fallen Master Sword, he saw the slices on his arms, cut with his own blade in strange designs. So it was his blood on the wall. That's why he had felt sick; the message has used a lot of his blood. His hat was next to the message, pinned there with a black throwing knife.

Ganondorf had meant a clear threat. Either Zelda or Midna was dead, or would be, and he was as good as gone as well. But how had Ganondorf gotten in unnoticed, cut up Link's arms while he was asleep and not woken him up, written the message, impaled his hat, and left before dawn? It made Link feel even worse.

His arms felt fiery and looked inflamed. The ugly scabs that coated the slices cracked and stung when he slid on his gauntlets. Luckily, the Master Sword seemed to have missed his major veins. If one of them had been severed, he would have died long before morning.

Luck, or intention?

Had Ganondorf meant to leave him alive? Did he have some sort of plan for how Link would die? He shuddered and pulled on his hat. It troubled him immensely how easily Ganondorf could have slit his throat while he slept, and instead he had used his blood to write threatening messages on the walls.

He pulled on his boots and went outside into the fresh morning air. Midna was just exiting the forest to his right, and sped up when she saw him.

"Hello," she said awkwardly, keeping her eyes downcast.

"'Morning." They rounded the corner and were soon in view of the village.

"So, how did you sleep?" Midna was trying to make conversation, obviously something she was terrible at. She was more of a…… I-insult-you-and-you-cry type.

"Too well." Link mumbled truthfully. "Ganondorf snuck into my house, sliced up my arms and wrote a message on the wall with my blood."

"WHAT?!" Midna stopped walking. "Why aren't you dead?"

"Do you want me dead?" Link found himself asking.

"No- of course not- where'd you… Forget it. Just show me." She grabbed his arm and dragged him back to his house.

"Dear Goddesses," she murmured, her eyes tracing over the message. " 'I am here, she is dead, so are you'? He doesn't bother to go into details, does he?"

Even now, Link couldn't stifle his grin; but he was dead serious again.

"I don't know how he got in, cut me up and got out. I've been trying to figure it out all morning. I can't come up with anything."

"I can't either. But he's been dead for a whole year, how can he just come back? Maybe it was Venivre…" Midna paused for a moment. "The Twili knew ancient resurrecting techniques, but the art was lost millennia ago. Could he have possibly learned it?"

"I don't know, I'm not a Twili." Link snapped. "I'm just surprised I didn't wake up while he carved my arms."

"Wait, let me see where he sliced you up." Midna took Link's right arm and removed his gauntlet. She inspected the crude slashes on his flesh, then her eyes went wide. "Ganondorf used the ancient Twili method of skin-singing. It's when a blade cuts the flesh a certain way so the victim feels no pain immediately. But he wrote on you using symbols, I can just barely make it out." She squinted, and Link was hanging onto her every word.

"It says, 'Two sides of the same coin'. Give me your other arm." Midna tore off his gauntlet and read what had been engraved into his flesh. "This one says, 'One cannot exist without the other'. D'you know what they mean?"

Link's breath caught in his chest. He had an idea of what they meant, but he was too afraid to say. He lowered his head and began to speak.

"I had dreams last night. I can't remember them really, but they were telling me to go to the Spring. I don't know what to do. Before you came back, I kept dreaming about Ganondorf. He was killing me. I don't think we should go to the Spring, what if he sent me the dreams to tell me to go only to kill you and Zelda once we were there? What if-"

He got no further, because Midna kissed him. When she pulled away, he was sputtering and speechless.

"That was because one, I love you, and two, shut up before I rip your head off and shut you up. Everything'll be fine."

"I can only hope so." he muttered, but embraced her all the same.

By now it was early morning, and Zelda was pacing the kitchen of Bo's house testily when they arrived.

"What took you so long? I've been up for hours waiting for you."

"Ganondorf got into my house last night, cut me up, wrote a message on the wall with my blood, and pinned my hat next to it with a knife."

"Wh-what? How?" Zelda's eyes went wide.

"I don't know, but Ganondorf wrote on the wall, 'I am here, she is dead, so are you', and on Link's arms it says, 'Two sides of the same coin' and 'One cannot exist without the other'. It's what you said the day I left. Could he have heard?" Midna crossed her arms to suppress a shudder.

"Impossible. He was dead by then." Zelda dismissed this, but her voice still carried doubt.

"Nothing is impossible," Link whispered. "I found that out when Ilia and Colin were kidnapped almost two years ago." Silence fell over them, each avoiding the others' eyes. Link was right, they all knew it. Ganondorf was really back.

"My dreams told me to go to the Spring." Link muttered, his eyes still downcast.

"Then let's go," Zelda opened the door and walked out. She needed some time to be alone, to think. They'd meet her at the Spring.

Midna stopped Link from following Zelda by taking his scabbed hand.

"I think she wants to be alone for a while." she said quietly. Link nodded. The silence that reigned was complete and empty, but after a few minutes Midna gently squeezed his hand and led him outside.

From the top of the stairs, Ilia's bright green eyes filled with tears of jealousy. She abruptly turned and flopped onto her bed, crying silently at being pushed out of Link's heart by a blue-skinned _freak_.

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sad, eh? don't worry, she'll b ok. Btw ppl, plz vote in the poll on my profile. thanks!


	25. Chapter Twenty Four

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Midna and Link walked in silence. The birds were singing over them and the squirrels darted away from their feet. In short, the day would be beautiful.

"I've been thinking," Midna began. "Y'know, since Ganondorf is back, you'll have to fight him again, won't you?"

"Apparently," he replied bluntly.

"But if you barely beat him last time, what if he's stronger than you this time, and what if you don't have a chance of beating him and you d-"

"Midna," Link took her other hand and stepped in front of her. "You told me that you loved me. Will you believe in me as well?"

She swallowed. "I love you, Link. I don't want to lose you like I lost Venivre. I know this sounds weird and awkward, but hey, at least I don't sound as weird or awkward as you."

He grinned faintly. "That's true."

"You never were good with words. Is that why you never talk around some people?" Midna squeezed his hands.

"Yes, pretty much. Most words fail me. But I have some that I know don't. Hey, Midna," He caught her rose-red eyes and continued. "I love you."

She laughed. "You're right! Those words are probably the best ones you've ever said!" She kissed him lightly and let go of his hands. "C'mon, Zelda's waiting. I'll bet she's wondering where we are right now."

Link laughed but fingered his sword. A crashing feeling of doom washed over him, erasing his smile and stealing his breath. He dropped to his knees, breathing heavily, and a voice he was sure was in his head laughed at him, over and over again. It's eerie chuckle filled his ears, and when he looked up at Midna, she was kneeling next to him, her lips were moving but he couldn't hear her. Sharp pain wracked his body, mental images of Midna, her face bloody, lying dead on the ground, flashed through his mind. Cold sweat beaded on his face. His chest felt constricted, his breathing was short and shallow.

His dreams came back in full vividness. Ganondorf's wicked, howling laugh, Link running to get away, and Midna's voice, too faint to hear, calling for him. Hot waves of agony made his throat seize up so he had no air at all. He was suffocating.

Suddenly, it was gone. Link's breath was ragged and heavy, and when he tried to stand back up, he doubled back over and retched.

Instead of recoiling like he had expected her to, Midna stayed by his side until Link had finished.

He stood, wiping his mouth on his gauntlet, but still felt nausea tingling the back of his throat.

Link realized that his dreams had just been warnings. Premonitions of things to come. Ganondorf was at the Spring.

So was Zelda.

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sorry for the cliffhanger, but y'know how us writers are.


	26. Chapter Twenty Five

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Link, his throat somehow not working properly, tried to tell Midna what was happening, but she couldn't understand.

"Link, swallow and speak. And don't throw up on me."

This time she failed to make him smile.

"M-Midna…… Zelda is in danger… My dreams…… warnings…" he choked over the words, feeble as they were, but Midna hauled him off his hands and knees and dragged him, tripping over his own feet as he struggled to recover, to the Ordon Spirit Spring.

"Hello again, Hero."

There stood his nightmare. Ganondorf, his black armor glinting in the soft morning light, his eyebrows knitted together and a self-appraising smile on his face.

His arm was crooked around Zelda's neck, a black dirk at her throat. She was not struggling; she appeared to be in shock, staring blankly at Midna and Link.

Midna let go of Link's arm and squared her shoulders.

"Why don't you say your lines, and then we get to the part where I scratch your eyes out."

"Laugh while you can," he hissed. "I have become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

Link chose this time to speak up, waving away his nausea. "I killed you once, I can kill you again."

Ganondorf's yellow eyes found Link's cerulean blue ones, and his nauseating grin widened. "Been enjoying your dreams, Hero? Ever wanted to make them come true? Because here's my chance."

He swung Zelda to face him, then terrifically whacked her across the jaw, knocking her unconscious, landing her in the shallow water.

Link drew his sword, Midna shifting rapidly into her imp form, and together they charged their enemy.

Midna fired blast after blast or Twili power at Ganondorf, but he easily dodged them as he blocked Link's swing with his own foul blade.

Midna flew over their heads, hovering, afraid to fire for fear of hitting Link. It was plain on her face that she was anxious. Below her, Ganondorf watched with sickening curiosity, his attempts to break from the lock of Link's sword failing. "And what is your little imp waiting for, I wonder?" He snarled. "Afraid to hurt you?" He threw all of his weight onto the sword and Link flew back.

It was then that Midna chose to fire. Ganondorf was unprepared, so was only able to dodge three of the four blasts and was struck in the chest. He staggered, and Link thrust his sword for the pulsating white wound in his chest.

Zelda was stirring behind Ganondorf, and Link was determined to keep his attention away from her. She was weaponless, and in her dizzy state, her magic would not be fully powerful. Just a few moments and she'd be fine…

Inches away from the black armor, the Master Sword stopped short, as if caught in an invisible web. Link shoved his weight onto the hilt, but the blade refused to budge. It hung suspended in midair, like a puppet made of stone.

A cruel, cold laugh erupted from Ganondorf's throat, chilling Link's blood. Behind Link, Midna froze, and Zelda's feeble splashing quieted.

"I am far stronger than you have ever hoped to be, you insolent brat. I have thrived in a place you would never expect, I have fed off of you, your feelings, your actions. I have prospered in a place where you would wither."

Link was afraid to ask. Curiosity killed the cat. Or, the Hero. But he asked anyway, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Where?"

"I thought you'd ask. So I prepared my answer ahead of time." He yawned, his perfect white teeth glinting in the early light. "Somewhere between death and life. I cannot die. Not permanently. Do you want to know why?"

Link gulped. He already knew the answer before Ganondorf spoke.

"Because _one cannot exist without the other_."

Zelda's sharp intake of breath signified that she understood. Midna, however, still hovering, looked confused.

Link faltered. His sword withdrew from the air and hung uselessly at his side. He had felt this. Ever since Ganondorf had engraved those words into his flesh.

"Link, what are you doing?" Midna cried, power welling up in her hands. "Kill him! Don't just stand there!"

"I can't," he whispered. "I can't."

"Why?!"

Ganondorf laughed again. "So naïve, Midna. Can you not see? If Link runs me through, I will come back, as I have to hunt every one of his forerunners. Zelda," he turned to the princess of light. "Are you familiar with the Old Legends? I would be so disappointed if you weren't."

She got to her feet. "Yes. Heroes from long ages past, every one of them, has been named Link. Every one of them has traveled through time. Every one of them has fought and defeated a common enemy." She bowed her head. "You."

"You see, Hero," Ganondorf turned back. "You and I are two sides of the same coin. We were meant to fight and kill each other. If I died, and I nearly always did, I would return six centuries later to challenge the next Hero. If the Hero died, then I would reign for a few years, then vanish."

"No…" Midna's power extinguished with a soft hiss.

"Yes," Ganondorf grinned. "If you kill me, the cycle ends. If someone other than the Hero kills the Enemy, then both Hero and Enemy disappear altogether. Link will die for the cost of my eternal death."


	27. Chapter Twenty Six

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Silence, save for the soft splashing of the Springwater, reigned thick and long. Link kept his cerulean eyes downcast, Midna's mind was whirring furiously, and Zelda kept trying to catch Link's glance.

"Understand now?" Ganondorf's deep voice cut through the quiet.

Midna instead turned to Link, who avoided her penetrating damask eyes. "You knew this all along," she murmured. It wasn't a question.

"Not until he scarred me." his reply was short.

"But why didn't you tell me?" Midna's voice rose.

"Ah, a lovers' quarrel!" Ganondorf snorted. "Why indeed, Link? Why not tell your princess?"

"I… I… I didn't want to worry you," he said lamely.

"WORRY ME?!" Midna screamed, automatically shifting back into her true form. "YOU IDIOT! YOU DIDN'T WANT TO WORRY ME, AND HERE WE ARE, ALL ABOUT TO DIE!"

Ganondorf's smile faded. "Yessss." he hissed. Lightning fast, his steel boot collided with Link's chest, winding him and knocking him a clear four feet from where he had once stood. "It's my turn to rule the Realms. The peace that has lasted for the past eighteen-hundred years is making me sick."

Midna didn't bother shifting forms again. She ripped her long skirt at the knees and threw the scrap into the water. Zelda clambered to her feet and began to charge her magic.

It's time for the girls to kick some ass.

Zelda feinted left, then went for his right, blue and gold magic flying from her palms, and Midna went the other way, black and red Twili power spewing dangerously close to Link, who's feeble breaths rattled weakly as he struggled to stand upright, his head spinning and his lungs feeling crushed.

Ganondorf struggled to block or dodge their magic, but every now and then a blue and gold sphere or a red and black one would hit him, making him stagger. When either Midna or Zelda connected, the other would move in.

Link, regaining his breath but still spinning, picked up the Master Sword and waited for an opening.

"You filthy, wicked, nasty, corroded, evil, malevolent, vile, loathsome bastard!" Midna screeched at Ganondorf, every word accompanied by a blast. She was frightening and beautiful at the same time, her carmine eyes flashing.

Zelda was silent, focusing all her energy into her magic. Her orbs of power stung the worst.

It seemed to go on forever, and though Midna and Zelda began to tire, Ganondorf didn't even slow. His sickening smile grew wider and wider as Midna and Zelda slowed, and finally stopped firing at him.

"Even if I were to die by your hands," he said simply, his foul blade slowly moving up and down as he held it. "Link would die with me."

Silence.

Link began to nervously twirl his sword. It was now or never. While his back was turned.

"How many times must eternal peace be threatened?" Ganondorf sneered. "Kill me, Twilight Princess. Kill me, and peace will reign forever."

"No!" Link cried, thrusting his sword into Ganondorf's back.

His breath became labored and short, and Ganondorf finally toppled into the water. His blood began to stain the top of the spring, but Zelda and Midna both lowered their hands, magic extinguished.

"It's over," Zelda murmured.

"For now," Midna quietly added.

"Six hundred years is a long time. The next Hero will stop him then as well. For now, he's gone." Link sighed. "I'm so tired…"

Midna rushed forward to catch him as he nearly fell forward.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"It…" he swallowed painfully. "It feels like part of me has been burned away. Like I'll never really be whole again."

"But six hundred years from now, another Link will stop him again. You're job is over. Everything is going to be fine now." Midna wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him.

When she released him, she turned toward the edge of the Spring and began to walk away, with Link following, but Zelda cried out.

"Link, no!" She rushed forward and shoved him down, where he landed hard on his back.

"Zelda!" Midna's cry filled the morning sky, and Link looked up.

Protruding from Zelda's stomach, streaked with her blood, was Ganondorf's foul blade.


	28. Chapter Twenty Seven

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Link's heart stopped. His mouth opened but no words came. All he could to was stare at Zelda, the sword quivering in her middle.

Ganondorf's harsh laugh, cracked and shuddering, sounded behind her, and fell silent.

He was finally dead.

"ZELDA!" Link jumped to his feet and grabbed her by the waist, but she slumped in his arms.

"Wasn't…… enough time to……… move…" her voice was soft, hardly even a whisper. Her eyes were beginning to become glassy.

Midna softly laid her hand on Zelda's forehead.

"You once saved me, Zelda. You gave your life for mine."

"Midna…… My task here is… finished…… Other Zeldas……… will aid the future… Heroes…… Do not… give your life…"

"I can't give you my life, but I can try to heal you," without another word, a soft golden glow increased under Midna's palm. "Link," she whispered. "Pull the sword out."

Link, still supporting Zelda, eased his hand around the huge hilt and gently tugged the blade from her body.

A small cry escaped her lips, but the wound immediately closed, leaving a small slit in Zelda's bloodred tunic.

As soon as Midna removed her hand from Zelda's forehead, she stumbled, nearly falling over into the water.

But Zelda's eyes would not open. Midna had done all she could, but it had not been enough to save her.

Zelda died in Link's arms, the sword removed from her body, in the company of the two people most dear to her.

Link felt his bright blue eyes beginning to well up with tears, and he gently set Zelda's body down on a patch of sand.

He removed the Master Sword from Ganondorf's carcass, which he promptly dragged to the nearby bridge and dumped into the abyss below.

Midna, who was in shock, kept murmuring over and over, "She's dead… why is she dead? I can save her…"

Link gently took her hand and led her away.

Bo was astonished to see Link and Midna return without Zelda, but their tears were enough to tell him what had happened.

"She died, didn't she? The princess,"

"Yes," Link kept his eyes downcast, avoiding the mayor at all costs.

Midna sat down at the table, buried her head in her hands, and cried. She sobbed on and on, making Link's tears spill over and run down his face. He didn't try to wipe them away, knowing they would not stop. He only sat down next to Midna and put his arm around her, offering little comfort.

It was noon when Midna could no longer cry. Her face was buried in the crook of Link's neck, where her tears had nearly soaked his tunic.

Even Bo managed to wipe at his eyes a few times.

"Princess," he said quietly. "You're welcome to stay here as long as you need to. I for one enjoy having you around."

"Th-thank you," Midna whispered softly, her ruby eyes rimmed a perfect crimson shade. "But I need to go home."

"Midna?" Link looked down on her in question. "Can we talk outside?"

She didn't answer. She took him by the hand and led him through the door to Bo's front porch.

"You have to go?" He asked.

"Yes," she avoided his eyes. "Look how much trouble was caused by me. I wanted to see you again, and now Zelda's dead. It's better if I just leave forever."

"If you leave, then I want to come with you."

"You belong here as much as I don't," she replied.

"Please," he begged. "Stay."

"I…" she swallowed. "I can't."

"What if someone could take care of the Twili throne in your place? Would you stay with me?" Link persisted.

Midna met his eyes. "Don't ask questions to which you already know the answer, wolf boy. But there is no one. My brother is dead."

Link bowed his head. "I know,"

"I have the Pendant or Worlds, I can leave now."

"Now?"

"Okay then, tomorrow. At dawn."


	29. Chapter Twenty Eight

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Midna stayed at Bo's that night. She could bear to stay in the forest. It was just too much. She loved Link, more than she had ever cared for anyone, and to see him eaten away at the thought of her leaving eternally gnawed at her heart.

It was because she loved him that she had to go. Zelda was dead because of her return. It was all her fault.

Midna had always left a trail of human/Twili wreckage in her wake, but never this bad. Leaving human/Twili wreckage had actually been fun, until Zelda died.

_No, dammit, _she cursed herself. _Why couldn't I save her?_

She didn't sleep at all that night. She thought for a long time, about Link, Venivre, the Twili, and the Light-Dwellers.

She made her choice as dawn was breaking.

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sorry it was so short ppls, but i don't have much more 2 say. THIS STORY IS NEARLY OVER!!!!!!


	30. Chapter Twenty Nine

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

_No, _Link thought futilely. _Go away, daytime, go away._

But the lightening sky he could see through his window was all too real. He hadn't slept a wink at all that night. He couldn't.

Link felt as though a worm had buried itself in his stomach, always squirming when Midna's voice sounded or when her name was called.

It was the worm of worry.

Worry that she no longer loved him.

Worry that she would turn her back on him.

Worry that she was leaving him. Forever.

_If she leaves me again, _Link thought grimly. _I'll probably die. I just can't go on without her in my life. I'm so stupid. _He seethed inwardly. _I have to tell her how much she means to me. Maybe I can get her to stay._

Sudden hope forced Link up. He hurriedly pulled on his chainmail by habit, and his green tunic over that. His hat was set askew on top of his blond-tinged brown hair, and the Master Sword automatically found itself on his back.

Halfway down the ladder from the loft, his boot slipped on a rung and he fell suddenly to the floor below, landing hard on his back and jarring his bones.

With a loud groan, Link sat up, trying to ignore the throbbing ache in his back. For a short moment, he sat, rolling his shoulders and assessing the pain, before pushing himself up and opening the door to the lightening world outside.

Knocking quietly on Bo's door, Link shifted his weight nervously from foot to foot, waiting for entry to be permitted.

The door flew open, and Midna, fully dressed and presentable, stood in the doorway. In the soft light of dawn, Link was sure he'd never noticed how truly beautiful she was.

"Midna, I- " he tried to say, but Midna quieted him, a slim blue finger against his lips.

"I've made my choice." she whispered.

Very slowly, she leaned forward and kissed him. Every cell in Link's body screamed in delight, and he wrapped his arms around her slight frame, holding her closer.

His little imp.

All Link could really feel was Midna, her form close against him, her cool soft lips against his. Her fiery hair smelled so sweet, and Link wanted, more than anything, for the perfect moment to last eternally.

But he was the first one to break away.

Regretfully letting go of her, he asked a single word.

"Why?"

"Because I love you. There has to be a reason for why I kiss you and when now?" she grinned weakly, but it vanished when he dropped his eyes from her. Midna sighed heavily before saying, "I can't stay. I love you enough to let you go."

"Midna," he whispered. "Don't leave me."

"I swear on my life," Midna said softly. "That if I can find someone - anyone - to take my place on the throne as soon as possible, you will see me again."

"Midna," Link gently caressed her face. "Let me come with you."

Midna smiled and drew away from his hand. "That's not going to work, wolf boy. You don't belong in my world. It would alter your being."

"Please don't go."

"It's the only way," Midna backed away from him, her long black gown making a soft rustle as she moved. "I promise. You will see me again."

With a gentle light that gradually became brighter and brighter until Link needed to squint to just make out Midna's shape, she was gone.

Link dropped to his knees dejectedly, a choked cry forcing itself through his throat.

"Midna!"

A cold feeling settled over his heart. Anguish was replaced with anger, and then he was filled with an overwhelming urge to scream.

He dropped to his knees, as if he had suddenly lost the will to stand. For the first time since Midna shattered the Mirror of Twilight, a pitifully small tear rolled down his cheek and fell to the porch.

With a jolt, Link let the sobs escape from his body, crying over and over again, "I love you, Midna. I will wait for you."

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

plz dont hate me... i needed Link to cry at least once, and a bit of drama never hurt.


	31. Chapter Thirty

CHAPTER THIRTY

The Twilight Realm seemed lifeless and dark compared to the World of Light. Midna sighed heavily, and found that she was short of breath. The tears suddenly came thick and fast, but she brushed her hand over her face to banish them.

_This was your choice,_ she reminded herself bitterly. _Your choice. _

_ "_Princess Midna!" a voice rang out over the Twilight. "Princess Midna!" A crowd swarmed Midna, they began talking all at once, giving her an immediate headache.

"Princess," one man said, looking worriedly at her. "You're crying."

That did it. Without an explanation, Midna broke away from the mass, running for her palace at top speed, her robes billowing behind her.

The guards froze, not knowing what to do, as she flew past them. Midna locked the door to her chambers, and threw herself onto her bed.

She forbid herself to cry. NO CRYING.

Midna stayed like that for the rest of the day and through the night. She was not bothered until the following day, when she was too hungry to stay in her room.

"Princess?" one of her guards knocked timidly on her door. "The other kingdoms have sent their princes as suitors, the people think it is high time you married."

Midna stood and opened the door.

"Send them all away!" she cried. "Tell them to go die in a hole for all I care! No, wait," she stopped, a wicked idea coming into her mind. "Don't say that. Send them to the throne room in six minutes."

"Yes, Milady," the guard bowed and left.

Midna quickly cleaned her face and rushed to the throne room, just as the guard ushered in the first suitor.

He was tall, with skin that was a dark midnight blue, and his hair was a deep crimson. His eyes were a bright, fiery orange, fierce and shining.

Midna lounged easily in her throne. "What's your name?"

He bowed respectfully. "Fair Princess Midna," he said to his feet. "I am Prince Nukul, from the northern kingdom to the far reaches of the Twilight Realm."

"Give me three good reasons why I should marry you," Midna intently inspected her fingernails. "And if you don't have three good reasons, then you can get the hell out of my palace."

Prince Nukul gulped but stood straight. "I have a powerful army to protect our kingdoms, I would follow you to the ends of the earth and back, and I am sure your kingdom would prosper with my help."

"What?" Midna's ruby eyes snapped up from her fingernails. "Are you saying that my kingdom is poor? That it can't prosper on its own?" Midna began walking towards Nukul her face a mask of fury, and he backed away. "Get the _hell_ out of my palace! And don't ever come back here!"

Nukul scurried out of the throne room. Midna stifled a laugh and returned to her throne. "Send in the next one. This is _so much fun_!"

The next prince, Prince Feirul, was stuck up and idiotic. Midna sent him away with his hair on fire and his mouth sealed shut. He'd called her a stupid bitch, and she'd been forced to whup his ass.

But, she had to admit, it was rather pleasurable.

The third and final prince, Prince Omiron, was strong willed and sharp-tongued, kind of like herself. Midna saw her choice.

"If I told you that I wanted you to take my place as leader of the Twilight Realm?" Midna leaned forward in her throne. "I don't want to marry you, because I found my true love a long time ago. But I want you to take my place."

"How would I go about that?" Omiron asked.

"I could just hand you power on a silver platter," Midna rolled her eyes. "But you have to swear to the Goddesses who created our world, even if they banished us here, that you will rule it wisely and justly."

"I swear," Omiron bowed deeply. "That I shall not abuse this power."

"And believe me," Midna narrowed her eyes. "If you do, I'll come back here and kill you. Got it?"

"Yes, Milady." Omiron promised.

"Alright then." Midna clapped her hands. "Guard?" the guard rushed into the throne room. "Omiron is to be your king."

"Congratulations, Milady," the guard bowed.

"I'll be leaving, and Omiron will be King of the entire Realm," Midna explained. "I probably won't be coming back. No questions," she demanded as the guard opened his mouth. "Just follow his orders. And if he uses his power for evil," Midna self-consciously tapped the Pendant of Worlds, which was nestled between her collarbones. "I shall know."

Midna swept from the throne room, and her thoughts turned unconsciously to Venivre. Her brother. She had killed him. Would the real Venivre have been happy with her choice? She would never know.

Midna decided to stay for just one more night. She needed to introduce Omiron to his new duties, and she needed to really accept that she and Link would be together.

Forever.


	32. Chapter Thirty One

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Link was alone for the first day and night after Midna, once again, left him. His heart was aching painfully for her, but he waited, and knew, as she had promised, that she'd return.

Ilia was paying more attention to him now, he noticed as he purchased what he needed from Sera's. She was watching him; watching him closely.

He offered to walk her home, feeling her eyes on his back as if they were burning him, and she accepted.

"So," she asked as they were walking. "Where's the Twili girl?"

"She went back to her Realm for a while." he ruefully answered. "Yesterday."

"Oh," she was quiet for a moment, when he brought her to her door. "Well, I'll see you around."

"Yeah," he walked home from there.

The next day, he noticed her asking him for several favors; to come over for lunch, to help with the chickens, and if she could watch him herd goats. He said yes, of course, to all of these, and on the afternoon of the same day, Link and Ilia were gathering wood for her fireplace.

"This should be enough, right?" Link's shoulders were aching from his heavy load of wood; Ilia was carrying a similar stack, but not nearly as large as his.

"Yeah," she grunted, adjusting the weight. They were in the Faron Woods, and were just crossing the bridge where Link had thrown Ganondorf's carcass. He tensed as they crossed it, not allowing himself to relax until they were near the Spirit Spring.

The Spring where Zelda had been murdered.

"Can we rest here?" Ilia gasped, nearly dropping her load.

"Sure," Link could see she was struggling, so they set down their wood and sat on the sand by the water.

Ilia sighed in contentment. "It's been a long time since you and I just... sat."

He nodded, drinking in the moment. Link cast her a quick glance, noticing acutely how beautiful she looked in the dying sunlight.

_You chose Midna. _A tiny voice reminded him, and he tore his eyes away from Ilia.

"Just so you know, I'm not mad anymore," she said, trying to catch his azure eyes. "About you and the Twilight Princess. I'm happy for you."

Link's surprise was too great and he met her gaze. "Really?"

Ilia nodded. "Truly. Just do me a favor before you see her again."

He smiled. "Anything, Ilia."

Her face became pleading. "Just once," she said softly. "Will you kiss me?"

Link froze. He loved Midna, he did, but he wanted Ilia to live a good life, too. One kiss wouldn't be so bad, would it? A single kiss to his best childhood friend was harmless. Half of his mind said no, don't kiss her, and the other half said why not?

"O-okay," he faltered.

"But... but would you kiss me... like you're kissing...... her?" Ilia was clearly struggling with this. Link knew she loved him, and one kiss was all she would get, so he said,

"I will." he took a deep breath, then put one hand on the side of Ilia's face.

He kissed her. Ilia's lips were cool and soft, and a small part of Link wanted to continue kissing her. For a minute, he got carried away, and so did Ilia. The kiss became deeper, until she was tilting her head to kiss him better. But when she began to pull him even closer to her, he broke away.

"Link...?" another woman's voice reached his pointed ears, and he stood quickly.

There, at the entrance to the Spirit Spring, stood Midna; and she had surely seen him kissing Ilia.

* * *

_oh noes! _**_BTW peeps, there's a poll on my profile. if u haven't voted on it, plz do so!!!_**


	33. Chapter Thirty Two

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Midna's heart nearly stopped as she saw Link kissing Ilia. No, it was more than a kiss, it was a sure sign of love. It was on the fine line between "passionate" and "make-out".

"Link...?" she heard herself croak.

He pulled away from Ilia and scrambled to his feet.

"Midna! I..." he shook his head and hurriedly walked towards her. His face was so lit up, so happy. The slimy bastard!

In reply, Midna slapped him across the face. "How could you?" she demanded in anguish. "I loved you! I was willing to give up everything for you! And this is my thank-you? You kissing another girl? Link, I thought you loved me!"

Midna shot a murderous, fiery glare at Ilia, whose tiny brain was probably still processing what was happening.

"My mistake," she hissed. Midna stalked away from the Spring, Link trying to keep up with her.

"Midna, you don't understand-"

"No, I don't!" Midna didn't face him as she replied. "I don't understand why you were shoving your tongue down her throat!"

"Midna! I wasn't-"

"Oh, you were," she snarled, not ceasing her stride.

"Midna, please, let me explain,"

"You know what, Link?" Midna finally faced him, tears running freely down her face, her heart breaking. "Maybe I should just go back to the Twilight Realm, where I live with people who look like me, and actually _give a damn_!"

"Midna- !"

"Shut up and go to hell!" Midna's fingers brushed against the Pendant of Worlds, and she whispered her wish to go home.

As she began to fade, Link shouted her name to make her turn, then threw himself at her, tackling her to the ground.

They both transported, landing hard just outside her chambers, on a balcony overlooking the Realm.

"Get off of me, you two-timing swine!" Midna punched him in the lip, making him bleed, but Link had suffered worse and kept his grip on her shoulders.

"Midna, she asked me to. That's all it was."

"Sure it was! How can you expect me to believe you?" Midna was underneath him, scratching at his face and neck, trying to wriggle free.

"I swear," Link felt her stinging blows and released her, standing up and stepping back towards the doors.

Midna got to her feet, brushing herself off. "Go back to where you belong, Hero. With your pale-skinned girlfriend and her _beautiful_ green eyes."

"I'm not going anywhere without you." Link crossed his arms, ignoring the numerous bloody scratches on his face and neck, and barred her way.

Midna wiped roughly at her claret eyes with her robe, and Link approached her, but she spat angrily at him,

"Stay away from me!"

"I love you," he whispered.

"No, you don't," Midna broke down completely into helpless sobs, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.

Link moved towards her, but Midna was too busy trying to stem the flow of tears that she didn't notice until she felt his arms wrap around her. Her hands resting on his chest, she had no way to force him away.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it," he said softly, pulling her closer.

Midna felt her fury give way. He hadn't meant that kiss as anything, just a gift for a friend. She laid her head on his shoulder and cried herself out.

"I'm so stupid," she choked. "I should have let you explain."

"I wouldn't have let you explain if I saw you kissing someone besides me." Link grinned weakly.

They both laughed lamely.

Midna partially stepped away from him, and kissed him. Link knew, deep down, that the kiss from Ilia was nowhere near as wonderful as the kisses Midna gave him.

"Princess Midna?"

They jumped apart, staring at the door to her chambers. A servant stood there, completely stunned, his mouth open wide. Midna and Link glanced at each other, then Midna sighed heavily.

"Well shit,"

* * *

srry, i had to have Midna swear. it's just who she is.


	34. Chapter Thirty Three

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

"Princess Midna!" the middle-aged servant was astonished at her language.

"Ruik, this is Link." Midna introduced Link to the man lamely; she could think of nothing else to say. "Link, Ruik."

"Princess, you do realize I'll have to turn you in to your husband." Ruik warned.

Link crossed his arms. "Husband?"

"Ruik, I thought the entire kingdom knew already. _I'm not married to Omiron._" Midna hastily replied.

"Princess, this man is a _Light-Dweller_. He does not belong in our world." Ruik persisted, shooting Link a glance. "Why isn't he a Spirit in our Twilight?"

"Because he's the Hero. The one who turned into a wolf in our presence." Midna explained.

"Why isn't he a wolf now?" Ruik demanded.

"Because it was all Zant's doing! The Twilight is pure now, and Link can remain here."

"I'm right here," Link piped up. "You could just ask me, y'know."

"Let me handle this, Wolfy." Midna hissed at him. "I got it all under control."

"Oh, really?" Link muttered back.

Midna nodded. "Just watch. Ruik?" she turned back to her servant. "Link and I have been in love for a long time. I only appointed Omiron to be my successor, that's all. I'm not married to Omiron. Clear?"

The servant nodded. "Yes, Princess. Forgive me, I did not understand."

"The hell you didn't." Midna snapped. "We're going now, and if you tell _anyone_ that we were here, then I'll personally see you banished."

"Yes, milady."

Midna nodded in satisfaction and whispered to the Pendant around her neck, slipping her hand through Link's.

They vanished as the Pendant of Worlds complied.

As soon as they were gone, Ruik smiled to himself. "I may just use this to promote myself to a position of power..."

_(Ruik will play no more part in this story...)_

* * *

Midna and Link landed softly on their feet on the outcropping of land above the sparkling turquoise waters of the Lanayru Spirit Spring.

Midna glanced at Link in confusion. "Why did you wish us here?"

Link grinned secretively. "Just watch," he said, releasing her hand and walking towards the edge of the ledge.

"Great Spirit!" he called into its depths. "I have one favor to ask of you!"

The glowing light of the Spirit floated up towards him, its body becoming visible in the shape of the dragonlike creature it was.

**"Hero," **it boomed. **"What do you desire? Your deeds are legend, of course, a single favor is in order."**

"Please," Link stepped back and took Midna's hand, pulling her to his side. "I have a question for the Princess of Twilight, and for you."

"Link...?" Midna was totally confused.

**"Hero, speak thy request,"**the Spirit loomed a little closer to them.

Link took Midna's left hand and looked deep into her eyes.

"Midna?" Link dropped to one knee. "Will you marry me?"

Midna froze. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her breath was taken away.

"I'm nineteen today," he kept his cerulean eyes locked with her rose ones. "It would be the greatest gift anyone could ever have given me. Midna," he begged. "I love you."

Midna flashed one of her winning smiles.

"Yes," she whispered simply.

"Spirit, will you marry us?" Link asked, reaching into his belt and pulling out a ring; made from dark onyx and perfectly circular.

If Spirits could smile, this one did.

**"I shall, Hero,"**

* * *

i know..... too sweet..... *sniffle sniffle* good luck, Link and Midna!!


	35. Epilogue

EPILOGUE

_**(Don't worry peeps! The votes are in, there's gonna be a sequel!!!)**_

Link and Midna were married quietly, two years after Ganondorf died for the first time, and mere months after they were reunited, by the Spirit of Lanayru in the kingdom of Hyrule. They were married as they were, with Link's face scratched by Midna's nails, and Midna's eyes still red-tinged from tears of jealousy.

They did not return to Ordon Province, but instead chose to live deep in the Faron Woods, close to Ordon and their friends. Link, once more, returned the Master Sword (with Midna's help) to the Sacred Grove.

Link had several of the people from Ordon help to build him and his wife a treehouse, high above them in the branches of an oak. Rusl, Fado, Bo, and Talo, Malo, Beth, Luda, and Ilia pitched in. Even Auru, with Shad, Ashei, and Telma arrived from Castle Town to help out.

By the time they finished, it was like a small cottage set among the canopy. A ladder tumbled down to the ground, and all was peaceful and solitary.

"I still can't believe I'm married to you," Midna said one evening, as they sat together, legs dangling off the edge of the wooden deck.

Link took her hand and kissed it. "It's been only a month, Midna. I can't believe it either." he laughed.

"I've noticed something lately," Midna scrutinized him.

"Oh? What?"

"You laugh a lot more. Kinda like me. Except you have no sense of humor, you ignorant dunce. You really need to learn some more jokes."

Link laughed with her, then pulled her to him and kissed her.

Midna sighed contentedly, resting her head on his shoulder and watching the sun set beyond the trees.

"We're going to stay like this forever, won't we?" Link asked softly, stroking her hair.

"Like what?" Midna asked.

"Like, happy, and in love, and together,"

"Link," Midna giggled. "You're such a dork. Of course we will. I promise, you clod, we'll always stay this way."

"Midna?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you, Midna,"

"I love you, too."

_**The End**_


End file.
